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WILL    BE    PUBLISHED    IN   APRIL, 

BY  THE  AUTHOR  OF 

BARRIERS     BURNED    AWAY, 

Play  and  Profit  in  My  Garden, 

In  this  volume  the  Author  details  his  own  very  suc- 
cessful experience  in  gardening  for  both  recreation  and 
profit. 

How  he  realized  $2,000  from  the  sale  of  fruit  and  vege- 
tables raised  on  two-and-a-quarter  acres,  besides  pro- 
viding an  abundant  home  supply,  and  how  others  can 
do  it. 

One  Vol.,  12mo,  $1.50. 

DODD    Si.   MEAD,    PUBLISHERS. 

I 


BARRIERS   BURNED  AWAY. 


BY 

THE    REV.    EDWARD    P.    ROE. 


As  feathers  to  the  arrow's  Sight 

A  surer  course  impart: 
So  truth  when  winged  by  fancy  ngbl 

May  sooner  reach  the  heart. 


NEW  YORK: 

DODD,    MEAD    &    COMPANY, 

751  Broadwat. 

1876. 


Entered  according  to  Act  of  Confess,  in  the  year  iSjj,  by 

t>  O  D  D    &     M  E  A  D, 
ta  the  Olfice  of  the  Librarian  of  Coni/ress.  at  Washtn^oo. 


rnrs    BOOK 

IS 

R  E  V  E  U  K  x\  T  L  Y     DEDICATED 
lO   THE    MEMORY 

OP 

MY    SAINTED    MOTHER. 


CONTENTS 


Faoc 
Preface <£ 

CHAPTER   I 
Love  Unknown. 7 

CIIArTER  II. 
Love  Known 16 

CIIArTER  IIL 
Launched • 23 

CHAPTER  IV. 
Cold  Water. 30 

CHAPTER  V. 
A  Hornet's  Nest 37 

CHAPTER  VL 
"  Starve  Then." 43 

CHAPTER  VIL 
A  Good  Samaritan 49 

CHAPTER  VIH. 
Yahcob  Bunk 56 

CHAPTER  IX. 
Land  at  Last. 64 

CHAPTER  X. 
The  New  Broom 71 


VI  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XI. 
Too  Much  alike 78 

CHAPTER  XIL 
Elue  Biood. .\     85 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
Deacon  Gudgeon's  SoQ 93 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
The  result  of  First  Love 98 

CHAPTER  XV. 
Very  Cold. 109 

CHAPTEJl  XVI. 
She  Speaks  to  Him 1 14 

CHAPTER  XVII. 
Promoted 1 18 

CHAPTER   XVIII. 
Just  in  Time 125 

CHAPTER  XIX. 
Rescued 134 

CHAPTER  XX. 
Miss  Ludolph  Makes  a  Discovery 14 J 

CHAPTER  XXI. 
What  is  the  Matter  With  Him 149 

CHAPTER  XXII. 
Is  He  a  Gentleman  ? 157 

CHAPTER  XXIH. 
Christine's  Idea  of  Christians 165 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 
Equal  to  an  Emergency t6j 


CONTENTS.  vil 

Fagx. 
CHAPTER  XXV. 
The  Revelation. 185 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 
Night  Thoughts 195 

CHAPTER  XXVII. 
Darkness. < . .  201 

CHAPTER  XXVIII. 
Miss  Ludolph  Commits  a  Theft 219 

CHAPTER  XXIX. 
A  Miserable  Triumph 227 

CHAPTER  XXX. 
Life  Without  Love 238 

CHAPTER  XXXI. 
Dennis's  Love  put  to  Practical  Use 249 

CHAPTER  XXXH. 
The  Two  Heights 266 

CHAPTER  XXXIII. 
Beguiled. 277 

CHAPTER  XXXIV. 
Both  Dennis  and  Christine  Learn  Something  Surprising 286 

CHAPTER  XXXV. 
The  Two  Pictures 298 

CHAPTER  XXXVI. 
Regret 312 

CHAPTER  XXXVII. 
Remorse 327 

CHAPTER  XXXVIII. 
An  Apparition. 338 


Viil  CONTENTS. 

Paos 
CHAPTER  XXXIX. 
If  He  Knew 351 

CHAPTER  XL. 
The  Gates  Open 363 

CHAPTER  XLI. 
Susie  Winthrop  appears  again 376 

CHAPTER    XLII. 
Suggestive  Pictures  and  a  Prize 385 

CHAPTER  XLHI. 
Fire  !  P'ire  ! 391 

CHAPTER  XLIV. 
Baron  Ludolph  Learns  the  Truth, 399 

CHAPTER  XLV, 
"  Christine  awalce  !  for  your  life  !  " 407 

CHAPTER  XLVI. 
On  the  Beach 420 

CHAPTER  XLVIL 
"  Prayer  is  mighty." — Christine  a  Christian 433 

CHAPTER  XLVIIL 
Christine's  Grave 444 

CHAPTER  XLIX. 
Susie  Winthrop 452 

CHAPTER  L. 
Dr.  Artcn  Struck  by  Lightning 461 

Cir.VPTER  LI. 
Bill  Cronk's  Toast 470 

CHAPTER  LH. 
"  Every  Barrier  Burned  Away." 481 


PREFACE. 


I  SHALL  say  but  few  words  in  regard  to  this  first  child 
of  my  imagination. 

About  one  year  ago  our  hearts  were  in  deepest  sym- 
pathy with  our  fellow  citizens  of  Chicago,  and  it  occurred 
to  me  that  their  losses,  sufferings,  and  fortitude  might 
teach  lessons  after  the  echoes  of  the  appaUing  event  had 
died  away  in  the  Press ;  and  that  even  the  lurid  and  de- 
structive flames  might  reveal  with  greater  vividness  the 
need  and  value  of  Christian  faith. 

I  spent  some  days  among  the  smouldering  ruins,  and 
then  commenced  the  following  simple  story  which  has 
grown  into  larger  proportions  than  at  first  intended.  But 
comparatively  a  small  portion  of  the  narrative  is  occupied 
with  the  fire,  for  its  scenes  are  beyond  description,  and  too 
strange  and  terrible  to  be  dwelt  upon.  Therefore  the  thread 
of  my  story  is  carried  rapidly  through  that  period  of  un- 
paralleled excitement  and  disaster. 


PREFACE. 


Nearly  all  the  scenes  introduced  are  historical,  and  are 
employed  to  give  their  terrible  emphasis  to  that  which  is 
equally  true  in  the  serenest  and  securest  times. 

E.  P.  R. 


BARRIERS    BURNED    AWAY. 


CHAPTER  L 

LOVE     UNKNOWN. 

From  its  long  sweep  over  the  unbroken  prairie,  a 
heavier  blast  than  usual  shook  the  slight  frame  house. 
The  windows  rattled  in  the  casements,  as  if  shivering  in 
their  dumb  way  in  the  December  storm.  So  open  and 
defective  was  the  dwelling  in  its  construction,  that  eddy- 
ing currents  of  cold  air  found  admittance  at  various 
points — in  some  instances  carrying  with  them  particles 
of  the  fine,  sharp,  hail-like  snow  that  the  gale  was  driving 
before  it  in  bUnding  fury. 

Seated  at  one  of  the  windows,  peering  out  into  the 
gathering  gloom  of  the  swiftly  coming  night,  was  a  pale, 
faded  woman,  with  lustrous  dark  eyes.  An  anxious  light 
shone  from  them,  as  she  tried  in  vain  to  catch  a  glimpse 
of  the  darkening  road  that  ran  about  fifty  yards  distant 
from  the  house.  As  the  furious  blast  shook  the  frail  ten- 
ement, and  circled  round  her  in  chilly  currents  from  many 
a  crack  and  crevice,  she  gave  a  short,  hacking  cough,  and 
drew  a  thin  shawl  closer  about  her  slight  frame. 

The  unwonted  violence  of  the  wind  had  its  effect  upon 
anoLher  occupant  of  the  room.  From  a  bed  in  fhe  corner 
near  the  stove  came  a  feeble,  hollow  voice, 

«Wifel' 


8  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY 

In  a  moment  the  woman  was  bending  over  the  bed, 
and  in  a  voice  full  of  patient  tenderness  answered, 

"  Well,  dear." 

"  Has  he  come  ?  " 

"Not  yetj  but  he  must  he  here  soon." 

The  word  "  must"  wms  emphasized  in  such  a  way  as  to 
mean  doubt  rather  than  certainty,  as  if  trying  to  assure 
her  own  mind  of  a  fact  about  which  painful  misgivings 
could  not  be  banished.  The  quick  ear  of  the  sick  man 
caught  the  tone,  and  in  a  querulous  voice  he  said, 

"  O !  if  he  should  not  get  here  in  time,  it  would  be 
the  last  bitter  drop  in  my  cup,  now  full  and  running  over." 

"  Dear  husband,  if  human  strength  and  love  can  ac- 
complish it,  he  will  be  here  soon.  But  the  storm  is  in- 
deed frightful,  and  were  the  case  less  urgent,  I  could 
almost  wish  he  would  not  try  to  make  his  way  through  it. 
But  then  we  know  what  Dennis  is ;  he  never  stops  to 
consider  difficulties,  but  pushes  right  on — and  if — if  he 
doesn't — if  it  is  possible,  he  will  be  here  before  very  long." 

In  spite  of  herself,  the  mother's  heart  showed  its  anx- 
iety, and  too  late  for  remedy,  she  saw  the  effect  upon  her 
husband.  He  raised  himself  in  bed  with  sudden  and  un- 
wonted strength.  His  eyes  grew  wild  and  almSst  fierce, 
and  in  a  sharp,  hurried  voice,  he  said, 

"  You  don't  think  there  is  danger  ?  There  is  no  fear 
of  his  getting  lost .''  If  I  thought  that  I  would  curse  God 
and  die. 

"  O  Dennis,  my  husband,  God  forbid  that  you  should 
speak  thus.     How  can  you  feel  so  toward  our  best  friend  ?  " 

"  ^Vhat  kind  of  a  friend  has  He  been  to  me,  pray  ? 
H;is  not  my  life  been  one  long  series  of  misfortunes  ? 
IIa\e  1  not  been  disappointed  in  all  my  hopes.''  I  once 
believed  in  God  and  I  tried  to  serve  Him.  But  if,  as  I  have 
been  laugln,  all  this  evil  and  misfortune  was  ordered  and 
made    my  inevitable  lot  by  Him,  He  has  not  been  my 


LOVE  TTNKNOWN.  ^ 

friend,  but  my  enemy.     He's  been  against  me,  not  for 
me." 

In  the  Winter  twilight  the  man's  emaciated,  unshorn 
face  had  the  ghostly,  ashen  hue  of  death.  From  caverr* 
ous  sockets  his  eyes  gleamed  with  a  terribly  vnndictive 
light,  akin  to  insanity,  and,  in  a  harsh,  high  voice,  as  un- 
natural  as  his  appearance  and  words,  he  continued  : 

"Remember  what  I  have  gone  through  !  What  I  have 
suffered  1  How  often  the  cup  of  success  that  I  was  rais- 
ing to  my  Mps  has  been  dashed  to  the  ground ! " 

"  But,  Dennis,  think  a  moment." 

"  Ah !  haven't  I  thought  till  my  heart  i^  gall  and  my 
brain  bursting  ?  Haven't  I,  while  lying  here,  hopelessly 
dying,  gone  over  my  life  again  and  again  ?  Haven't  I 
lived  over  every  disappointment,  and  taken  every  step 
downward  a  thousand  times  ?  Remember  the  pleasant, 
plentiful  home  I  took  you  from,  und^  the  great  elms  in 
Connecticut.  Your  father  did  not  approve  of  your  mar 
lying  me,  and  said  I  was  only  a  poor  school-teacher.  But 
you  know  then  that  I  had  every  prospect  of  getting  the  vil- 
lage academy,  but  with  my  luck  another  got  ahead  of  me. 
Then  I  determined  to  study  law.  What  hopes  I  had !  i 
already  grasped  political  honors  that  seemed  within  my 
reach,  for  you  know  I  was  a  ready  speaker.  If  my  friends 
could  only  have  seen  that  I  was  peculiarly  fitted  for  pub- 
lic life  and  advanced  me  sufficient  means,  I  would  have 
returned  it  tenfold.  But  no ;  I  was  forced  into  other 
things  for  which  I  had  no  great  aptness  or  knowledge, 
and  years  of  struggling  poverty  and  repeated  disappoint- 
ment followed.  At  last  your  father  died  and  gave  u.s 
enough  to  buy  a  cheap  farm  out  here.  But  why  go  over 
our  experience  in  the  West  ?  My  plan  of  maknig  sugar 
from  the  sorghum,  which  promised  so  brilliantly,  has 
ended  in  the  most  wretched  failure  of  all.  And  now  money 
has  gone,  health  has  gone,  and  soon  my  miserable  lw9 


lO  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAV. 

will  be  over.  Our  boy  must  come  back  from  college,  and 
you  and  the  two  little  ones — what  will  you  do  ? "  and  the 
man  covered  his  head  with  the  blanket  and  wept  aloud. 
His  poor  wife,  borne  down  by  the  torrent  of  his  sorrow, 
was  on  her  knees  at  his  bedside,  with  her  face  buried  in 
her  hands,  weeping  also. 

But  suddenly  he  started  up.  His  sobs  ceased.  The 
tears  congealed  upon  his  face.  His  eyes  grew  hard  and 
fierce,  and  his  hands  clenched. 

"  But  he  was  coming,"  he  said.  "  He  may  get  lost  in 
the  storm  this  bitter  Winter  night." 

He  grasptfd  his  wife  roughly  by  the  arm.  She  was  as- 
tonished at  his  sudden  strength,  and  raised  a  tearful,  star- 
tled face  to  his.  It  was  well  she  could  not  see  its  terri- 
ble expression  in  the  dusk ;  but  she  shuddered  as  he 
hissed  in  her  ear, 

"  If  this  should  happen — if  my  miserable  death  is  the 
cause  of  his  death — if  my  accursed  destiny  involves  him, 
your  staff  and  hope,  in  so  horrible  a  fate,  what  have  I  to 
do  but  curse  God  and  die  ? 

It  seemed  to  the  poor  woman  that  her  heart  would 
burst  with  the  agony  of  that  moment.  As  the  storm  had 
increased,  a  terrible  dread  had  chilled  her  very  soul. 
Every  louder  blast  than  usual  had  caused  her  an  internal 
shiver,  while  for  her  husband's  sake  she  had  controlled 
herself  outwardly.  Like  a  shipwrecked  man  who  is  cling- 
ing to  a  rock,  that  he  fears  the  tide  will  submerge,  she  had 
watched  the  snow  rise  from  one  rail  to  another  along  the 
fence.  When  darkness  set  in  it  was  half  way  up  to  the 
top  rail,  and  she  knew  it  was  drifting.  The  thought  of 
her  ruddy,  active,  joyous-hearted  boy,  whose  affection  and 
hopefulness  had  been  the  broad  track  of  sunlight  on  her 
hard  path — the  thought  of  his  lying  white  and  still  beneath 
one  of  these  great  banks,  just  where  she  could  never  know 
till  Spring  rains  and  suns  revealed  to  an  indifferent  stran- 


LOVE   UNKNOWN.  1 1 

ger  his  sleeping-plaee,  now  nearly  overwhelmed  her  also, 
and  even  her  faith  wavered  on  the  brink  of  the  dark  gulf 
ol  despair  into  which  her  husband  was  sinking.  Left  to 
herself,  she  might  have  sunk  for  a  time,  though  her  sin- 
cere belief  in  God's  goodness  and  love  would  have  tri- 
umphed. But  her  womanly,  unselfish  nature,  her  long 
habit  of  sustaining  and  comforting  her  husband,  came  to 
hei  aid.  Breathing  a  quick  prayer  to  heaven,  which  was 
scarcely  more  than  a  gasp  and  a  glance  upward,  she  asked, 
hardly  knowing  what  she  said — 

"  And  what  if  he  is  not  lost  ?  What  if  God  restores 
him  safe  and  well  ?  " 

She  shuddered  after  she  had'  thus  spoken,  for  she  saw 
that  her  husband's  belief  in  the  hostility-  of  God  had 
reached  almost  the  point  of  insanity.  If  this  test  failed, 
would  he  not,  in  spite  of  all  she  could  say  or  do,  curse 
God  and  die,  as  he  had  said  ?  But  she  had  been  guided 
in  her  words  more  than  she  knew.  He  that  careth  for  the 
fall  of  the  sparrow,  had  not  forgotten  them  in  their  sore 
extremity. 

The  man  in  answer  to  her  question  relaxed  his  hold 
upon  her  arm,  and  with  a  long  breath  fell  back  on  his 
pillow. 

"  Ah  !  "  said  he,  "  if  I  could  only  see  him  again  safe 
and  well,  if  I  could  only  leave  you  with  him  as  your  pro- 
tector and  support,  I  believe  I  could  forgive  all  the  past 
and  be  reconciled  even  to  my  hard  lot." 

"  God  gives  you  opportunity  so  to  do,  my  father,  for 
here  I  am  safe  and  sound." 

The  soft  snow  had  muffled  his  footsteps,  and  his  ap- 
proach had  been  unnoted.  Entering  in  at  the  back  door, 
and  passing  through  the  kitchen,  he  had  surprised  his  pa- 
rents in  the  painful  scene  above  described.  As  he  saw 
his  mother's  form  in  dim  outline  kneeling  at  the  bed,  her 
^ace  buried  in  its  covering, — as  he  heard  his  father's  sig- 


12  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

nificant  words,  the  quick-witted  youth  realized  the  situa- 
tion. While  he  loved  his  father  dearly,  and  honored  him 
for  his  many  good  traits,  he  was  also  conscious  of  his 
faults,  especially  this  most  serious  one  now  threatening 
such  fatal  consequences — that  of  charging  to  God  the 
failures  and  disappointments  resulting  from  defects  in  his 
own  character.  It  seemed  as  if  a  merciful  Providence 
was  about  to  use  this  awful  dread  of  his  death — a  calam- 
ity that  rose  far  above  and  overshadowed  all  the  past — • 
as  the  means  of  winning  back  the  alienated  heart  of  this 
weak  and  erring  man. 

The  effect  of  his  sudden  and  unexpected  presence  in 
the  sick  room  was  most  marked.  The  poor  mother  who 
had  shown  such  self-control  and  patient  endurance  before, 
now  gave  way  utterly,  and  clung  for  a  few  moments  around 
her  soil's  neck  with  hysterical  energy,  then  in  strong  reac- 
tion, fainted  away.  The  strain  upon  her  worn  and  over- 
taxed system  had  been  too  severe. 

At  first  his  father  could  only  look  through  the  dusk  at 
the  outline  of  his  son  with  a  bewildered  stare,  his  mind 
too  weak  to  comprehend  the  truth.  But  soon  he  too  was 
sobbing  for  joy. 

But  when  his  wife  suddenly  became  a  dead  and  life- 
less weight  in  his  son's  arms,  and  he  in  wild  alarm  cried, 
"  Mother,  wha.t  is  the  matter  ?  Speak  to  me  !  O  I  have 
killed  her  by  my  rash  entrance,"  the  sick  man's  manner 
changed,  and  his  eyes  again  became  dry  and  hard,  and 
even  in  the  darkness  had  a  strange  glitter. 

"  Is  your  mother  dead  ?  "  he  asked  in  a  low,  hoarse 
voice. 

"  O  mother,  speak  to  me,"  cried  his  son,  forgetting  for 
a  time  his  father. 

For  a  moment  there  was  death-like  silence.  Then  the 
young  man  groped  for  an  old  settle  in  the  corner  of  the 
room,  and  laid  his  mother  tenderly  upon  it  and  sprang  for 


LOVE   UNKNOWN. 


13 


a  light,  but  as  he  passed  his  father's  bed  that  same  strong 
grasp  fell  upon  his  arm  that  his  mother  had  shuddered  un- 
der a  little  before,  and  the  question  was  again  hissed  in 
his  ear,  "  Is  your  mother  dead  ?  "  For  a  moment  he  had 
ao  power  to  answer,  and  his  father  continued, 

"  What  a  fopl  I  was  to  expect  God  to  show  mercy  or 
kindness  to  me  or  mine  while  I  was  above  ground.  You 
are  only  brought  home  to  suffer,  more  than  death  in  seeing 
your  mother  die.  May  that  God  that  has  followed  me  all 
my  life,  not  with  blessings — " 

"  Hush,  father  !  "  cried  his  son,  in  loud,  commanding 
tones.  "  Hush,  I  entreat,"  and  in  his  desperation  he  ac- 
tually put"  his  hand  over  his  father's  mouth. 

The  poor  woman  must  have  been  dead,  indeed,  had 
she  long  remained  deaf  to  the  voice  of  her  beloved  son, 
and  his  loud  tones  partially  revived  her.  In  a  faint  voice 
she  called, 

"  Dennis  ! " 

With  hands  suddenly  relaxed,  and  hearts  almost  stilled 
in  their  beating,  father  and  son  listened  for  a  second. 
Again,  a  little  louder,  through  that  dark  and  silent  room, 
was  heard  the  faint  call, 

"  Dennis  ? " 

Springing  to  her  side,  her  son  exclaimed, 

"  O  mother,  I  am  here  ;  don't  leave  us ;  in  mercy  don't 
leave  us."  • 

"  It  was  I  she  called,"  said  his  father. 

With  unnatural  strength  he  had  tottered  across  the 
room,  and  taking  his  wife's  hand,  cried, 

"  O  Ethel,  don't  die ;  don't  fill  my  already  full  cup  to 
overflowing  with  bitterness." 

Their  familiar  voices  were  the  best  of  remedies.  Af- 
ter a  moment  she  sat  up,  and  passing  her  hand  across  her 
blow  as  if  to  clear  away  confusion  of  mind,  said, 

"Don't  be  alarmed;    it's  only  a  faint  turn.     I  don't 


14  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

Tionder  though  that  you  are  frightened,  for  I  never  was 
so  before." 

Poor  woman,  amid  all  the  emeigencies  of  her  hard  lot, 
she  had  never  in  the  past  given  way  so  far. 

Then,  becoming  aware  of  her  husband's  position,  she 
exclaimed — 

"  Why,  Dennis,  my  husband,  out  of  your  bed — you  will 
catch  your  death." 

*'  Ah,  wife,  that  matters  little  if  you  and  Dennis  live." 

"  But  it  matters  much  to  me,"  cried  she,  springing  up. 

By  this  time  her  son  had  struck  a  light,  and  they  were 
able  to  look  on  each  other's  faces.  The  unnatural  strength, 
the  result  of  excitement,  was  fast  leaving  her  husband. 
The  light  revealed  him  helplessly  leaning  on  the  couch 
where  his  wife  had  laid.  His  face  was  ashen  pale,  and  he 
was  gasping  for  breath.  Tenderly  they  carried  him  back 
to  his  bed,  and  he  was  too  weak  now  to  do  more  than 
quietly  lie  upon  it  and  look  at  them.  After  replenishing 
the  fire,  and  looking  at  the  little  ones  that  were  sleeping 
in  the  outer  room,  they  shaded  the  lamp,  and  sat  down  at 
his  bedside,  while  the  mother  asked  her  son  many  eagei 
questions  as  to  his  escape.  He  told  them  how  he  had 
struggled  through  the  snow  till  almost  exhausted,  when  he 
was  overtaken  by  a  farmer  with  a  strong  team,  and  thus 
enabled  to  make  the  journey  in  safety. 

As  the  sick  man  looked  and  listened,  his  face  grew 
softer  and  more  quiet  in  its  expression. 

Then  the  young  man,  remembering,  said, 

"  I  bought  the  medicines  you  wrote  for,  mother,  at 
Blankville.  This,  the  druggist  said,  vould  produce  quiet 
sleep,  and  surely  father  needs  It  after  the  excitement  of 
the  evening." 

The  opiate  was  given,  and  soon  the  regular,  quiet 
breathing  of  the  sick  man  showed  that  it  had  taken  effect. 
A  plain  but  plentiful  supper,  which  die  anxious  mother  had 


'  LOVE   UNKNOWN.  15 

prepared  hours  before,  was  placed  upon  the  kitchen  table, 
and  the  young  man  did  ample  justice  to  it.  For  the  mo- 
ment the  cravings  of  his  heart  were  satisfied  in  meeting 
his  kindred  after  absence,  he  became  conscious  of  the 
keenest  hunger.  Toiling  through  the  snow  for  hours  in 
the  face  of  the  December  storm,  had  taxed  his  system  to 
the  utmost,  and  now  he  felt  the  need  of  food  and  rest. 
After  supper  he  honestly  meant  to  watch  at  his  father's 
bedside,  while  his  mother  slept ;  but  he  had  scarcely  seat- 
ed himself  on  the  old  settle,  before  sleep,  like  an  armed 
man,  overpowered  him,  and  in  spite  of  all  his  efforts  he  was 
soon  bound  in  the  dreamless  slumber  of  healthful  youth. 
But  with  eyes  so  wide  and  lustrous  that  it  would  seem 
sleep  could  never  close  them  again,  the  wife  and  mother, 
pale  and  silent,  watched  between  he»"  loved  ones.  The 
troubled  expression  was  gone,  for  the  ranks  of  her  little 
band  had  closed  up,  and  all  were  about  her  in  one  more 
brief  rest  in  the  forward  and  uncertain  march  of  life.  She 
seemed  looking  intently  at  something  far  off — something 
better  discerned  by  the  spiritual  than  the  natural  eye.  Dis- 
appointments had  been  bitter,  poverty  bard  and  grinding, 
but  she  had  learned  to  escape  into  a  large  world  that  was 
fast  becoming  real  to  her  strong  imagination.  While  her 
husband  was  indulging  in  chimerical  visions  of  boundless 
prosperity  here  on  earth,  which  he  would  bring  to  pass  by 
some  lucky  stroke  of  fortune  or  invention,  she  also  was 
picturing  to  herself  grander  things  which  God  would  re- 
alize to  her  beyond  time  and  earth.  When  alone,  in  mo- 
ments of  rest  from  incessant  toil,  she  would  take  down  the 
great  family  Bible,  and  with  her  finger  or  some  desciip- 
tion  of  the  "  new  heavens  and  new  earth  "  as  the  connect- 
ing link  between  her  promise  and  her  strong  realization  of 
it,  she  would  look  away  with  that  intent  gaze.  The  new 
world,  purged  from  sin  and  sorrow,  would  rise  before  her 
with  more  than  Eden  loveliness.     Her  spirit  would  revel 


1 6  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

in  its  shadowy  walks  and  sunny  glades,  and  as  the  crown- 
ing joy  she  would  meet  her  Lord  and  Saviour  in  some  se- 
cluded place,  and  sit  listening  at  His  feet  like  Mary  of  old. 
.Thus^  in  the  strong  illusion  of  her  imagination,  Christ's 
words  seemed  addressed  directly  to  her,  while  she  looked 
up  into  His  face  with  wrapt  attention.  Instead  of  reading 
her  Lord's  familiar  sayings,  she  seemed  to  listen  to  them  as 
did  the  early  disciples.  After  a  little  time  she  would  close 
the  Bible  and  go  back  to  her  hard  practical  life  with  an 
awed  yet  strengthened  hopeful  expression,  like  that  which 
must  have  rested  on  the  disciples'  faces  on  coming  down 
from  the  Mount  of  Transfiguration. 


CHAPTER  IL 

LOVE    KNOWN. 

Hour  after  hour  passed.  The  storm  was  dying  away, 
and  at  times,  through  broken  rifts  in  the  clouds,  stars 
would  gleam  out.  Instead  of  the  continued  rush  and  roar, 
the  winds  blew  in  gusts  at  longer  intervals,  and  nature 
seemed  like  a  passionate  child  that  had  cried  itself  to 
sleep.  The  fitful  gusts  were  like  the  involuntary  sobs  that 
heave  the  breast,  till  at  last  quiet  and  peace  take  the  place 
of  stormy  anger. 

It  seemed  as  if  the  silent  watcher  never  could  with- 
draw her  gaze  from  the  beautiful  world  of  her  vision. 
Never  had  it  seemed  so  near  and  real  before,  and  she  was 
unconscious  of  the  lapse  of  time.  Suddenly  she  heard 
her  name  called : 

"  Ethel !  " 

If  the  voice  had  come  from  the  imaginary  world  pre- 


LOVE   KNOWN.  1 7 

sent  to  her  fancy,  it  could  not  have  startled  her  more  for 
a  moment.  Then  she  reaUzed  that  it  was  her  husband 
wno  spoke.  He  had  called  her  name  in  his  sleep,  and  yet 
it  seemed  a  call  of  God.  At  once  it  flashed  through  her 
mind  that  in  dreaming  of  a  glorious  and  happy  future, 
she  was  forgetting  him  and  his  need. 

She  turned  the  light  upon  his  face.  Never  had  he 
looked  so  pale  and  wan,  and  she  realized,  as  never  be- 
fore, that  he  might  be  near  his  end.  In  an  agony  of  self- 
reproach  and  yearning  tenderness  she  knelt  at  his  bed- 
side and  prayed  as  she  never  prayed  before.  Could  he 
go  home  ?  Could  he  be  received,  feeling  toward  his  Father 
as  he  did .''  He  had  talked  of  forgiving  when  he  stood  so 
sorely  in  need  of  Christ's  forgiveness.  And  she  had  been 
forgetting  that  need,  when  every  m'oment  might  involve 
her  husband's  salvation.  Out  of  his  sleep  he  had  called 
her  to  his  help.  Perhaps  God  had  used  his  unconscious 
lips  to  summon  her.  With  a  faith  naturally  strong,  but 
greatly  increased  by  the  vision  of  the  night,  she  went,  as 
it  were,  directly  into  the  presence  of  her  Lord,  and  en- 
treated in  behalf  of  her  husband. 

As  she  thus  knelt  at  the  bedside,  with  her  face  burieo 
in  the  covering,  she  felt  a  hand  placed  softly  on  her  head 
and  again  her  husband's  voice  called — 

"  Ethel !  " 

She  looked  up  and  saw  that  he  was  awake  now,  his 
eyes  fixed  on  her  with  an  expression  of  softness  and  ten- 
derness that  she  had  not  seen  for  many  a  long  day.  The 
old,  restless,  anxious  light  had  gone. 

"  What  were  you  doing,  Ethel  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  Praying  that  you  might  see  that  God  loved  you — that 
you  might  be  reconciled  to  Him." 

Two  great  tears  gathered  in  the  man's  eyes.  His  lips 
qui  leered  a  moment,  then  he  said,  brokenly — 

"  Surely  God  must  love  me,  or  He  would  never  have 


l8  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

given  me — a  wife — who  would  watch  and  pray  for  me— 
the  long  Winter  night." 

"  O  Dennis,  forgive  me  ;  I  cannot  deceive  you  ;  for  a 
time  I  forgot  you,  I  forgot  everything,  and  just  wandered 
through  oaradise  alone.  But  in  your  sleep  you  called  me 
to  your  help,  and  now  it  seems  as  if  I  could  not  be  happy 
even  there  without  you.  I  pray  you,  in  Christ's  stead,  be 
reconciled  to  God,"  she  pleaded,  falling  into  the  familiar 
language  of  Scripture,  as  she  often  did  under  strong  emo- 
tion. Then,  in  low,  thrilling  words,  she  portrayed  to  him 
the  "  new  earth  "  of  her  vision,  wherein  "  God  shall  wipe 
away  all  tears,  and  there  shall  be  no  more  death,  neither 
sorrow  nor  crying,  neither  shall  there  be  any  more  pain." 
She  showed  him  how  there  all  might  still  be  well — that 
eternity  was  long  enough  to  make  up  for  the  ills  of  our 
brief  troubled  life  here.  But  his  mind  seemed  preoccu- 
pied. These  future  joys  did  not  take  that  hold  upon  him 
that  she  longed  to  see.  His  eyes  seemed  to  grow  dim  in 
tender,  tearful  wistfulness,  rather  than  become  inspired 
with  immortal  hopes.     At  last  he  spoke : 

"  Ethel,  it  seemed  as  if  I  heard  some  one  calling  me. 
I  woke  up — and  there  you — were  praying — for  me.  I 
heard  my  name, — I  heard  God's  name, — and  I  knew  that, 
you  were  interceding  for  me.  It  seemed  to  break  my  hard 
heart  right  up  like  the  fountains  of  the  great  deep  to  see 
you  there, — praying  for  me, — in  the  cold,  cold  room.  (The 
room  was  not  cold;  it  was  not  the  Winter's  chill  that  he 
was  feeling,  but  a  chill  that  comes  over  the  heart  even  in 
the  tropical  Summer.)  "  Then,  as  you  prayed,  a  great 
light  seemed  to  shine  into  my  soul.  I  saw  that  I  had  been 
charging  God  unjustly  with  all  my  failures  and  misfor- 
tunes, when  I  had  to  thank  myself  for  them.  Like  a  wil- 
ful child,  I  had  been  acting  as  if  God  had  but  to  carry 
out  my  wild  schemes.  I  remembered  all  my  unreasona- 
ble murmurings  and  anger ;  I  remembered  the  dreadful 


LOVE  KNOWN. 


19 


words  I  was  on  the  point  of  uttering  to-night,  and  for  a 
moment  it  seemed  as  if  the  pit  would  open  and  swallow 
me  up." 

He  paused  for  breath,  aud  then  went  on. 

"  But  as  my  despairing  eyes  glanced  restlessly  around, 
they  fell  upon  the  face  of  my  son,  noble  and  beautiful 
even  in  sleep,  and  I  remembered  how  God  had  brought 
him  safely  back.  Then  your  low,  pleading  tone  fixed  my 
attention  again.  It  seemed  to  me  that  God's  love  must 
be  better  and  stronger  than  human  love,  and  yet  you  had 
loved  me  through  all  my  folly  and  weakness :  so  perhaps 
had  He.  Then  I  felt  that  such  a  prayer  as  you  were  of- 
fering could  not  remain  unheard — you  seemed  to  pray  so 
earnestly.  I  felt  that  I  ought  to  pray  myself,  and  I  com- 
menced calling  out  in  my  heart, '  God  be  merciful  to  me — 
a  sinner."  Then,  while  I  prayed,  I  seemed  to  see  my  Sa- 
viour's face  right  above  your  bowed  head.  O  how  re- 
proachfully He  looked  at  me,  and  yet  His  expression  was 
full  of  love,  too.  It  was  just  such  a  look,  I  think,  that 
He  fixed  on  Peter  when  he  denied  Him.  Then  it  seemed 
that  I  fell  down  at  His  feet  and  wept  bitterly,  and  as  I  did 
so  the  look  of  reproach  passed  away,  and  only  an  expres- 
sion of  love  and  forgiveness  remained.  A  sudden  peace 
came  into  my  soul  which  I  cannot  describe  ;  a  rush  of 
tears  into  my  eyes,  and  when  I  had  wiped  them  away,  I 
saw  only  your  bowed  form  praying — praying  on  for  me. 
And  Ethel,  dear,  my  patient,  much-enduring  wife,  I  be- 
lieve God  has  answered  your  prayer.  I  feel  that  I  am  a 
new  man." 

"  God  be  praised  !  "  exclaimed  his  wife  with  streaming 
eyes.  Then  in  a  sudden  rush  of  tenderness,  she  clasped 
her  husband  to  her  heart,  her  strong  love  seeming  like  the 
echo  of  God's  love,  the  earnest  here  on  earth  of  that  above 
where  all  barriers  shall  pass  away. 
•  The  sound  of  their  voices  toward  the  last  had  awaken- 


20  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

ed  their  son,  and  he  now  stood  beside  them  with  wet  eyes 
and  heaving  breast. 

When  his  wife  rose  from  her  embrace,  she  saw  that  her 
husband  was  verj'  weak.  For  a  few  moments  he  gasped 
for  breath.  Then  getting  a  Httle  easier,  he  looked  up  and 
saw  his  son,  and  exclaimed — 

"Thank  God — my  boy, — thank  God — you  are  here. 
Ah,  my  son, — I  have  learned  much — since  we  spoke  to- 
gether last.  I  have  seen  that — I  have  much  more — need 
of  forgivness  than — to  forgive.  Thanks  to  your — mother's 
prayers, — I  believe, — I  feel  sure  that  I  am  forgiven." 

"More  thanks  to  God's  love,  Dennis,"  said  his  wife. 
"God  wanted  to  forgive  you  all  the  time  more  than  we 
wanted  Him  to.  Thank  God,  who  is  rich  in  mercy,  for 
His  great  love  wherewith  He  loved  us.  He  is  long  suffer- 
ing to  us-ward,  not  willing  that  any  should  perish." 

"Those  are  sweet  words,  wife,  and  I  have  found  them 
true." 

For  a  little  time  they  sat  with  clasped  hands,  with 
hearts  too  full  to  speak.  Faint  streaks  along  the  Eastern 
horizon  showed  that  the  dawn  was  near.  The  sick  man 
gave  a  slight  shiver,  and  passed  his  hands  across  his  eyes 
as  if  to  clear  away  a  mist,  and  then  said  feebly, 

"Dennis,  my  son, — won't  you  turn  up  the  lamp  a  little 
— and  fix  the  fire  ?  The  room  seems  getting  so  cold — and 
dark." 

The  wife  looked  at  her  son  in  quick  alarm.  The  stove 
was  red-hot,  and  the  lamp  no  longer  shaded,  stood  o^nly 
on  the  table. 

The  son  saw  that  he  must  take  the  lead  in  the  last  sad 
scene,  for  in  the  presence  of  death  the  heart  of  the  loving, 
constant  woman  clung  to  her  husband  as  never  before. 
Throwing  herself  on  her  knees  by  his  side,  she  cried  with 
loud,  choking  sobs, 

"  O  Dennis, — husband, — I  fear — ^you  are  leaving  me  1' 


LOVE  KNOWN.  ai 

"  Is  this  death  ? "  he  asked  of  Jiis  son,  in  an  awed  tone. 

"  I  fear  it  is,  father,"  said  the  young  man  gently. 

After  a  moment  his  father  said  composedly, 

"  I  think  you  are  right.  I  feel  that — my  end  is  near. 
Ethel, — darling, — for  my  sake — try  to  be  calm — during  the 
last  few  moments  I  am  with  you." 

A  few  stifled  sobs  and  the  room  was  still. 

"  I  have  but  little  time  to — put  my  house — in  order, — 
and  if  I  had  months — I  could  not  do  it.  Dennis,  I  leave 
you  —  little  else — than  debts, — embarrasments,  and  the 
record  of  many  failures.  You  must  do — the  best  you  can. 
I  am  not  able  to  advise  you.  Only  never  love  this  world 
as  I  have.  It  will  disappoint  you.  And  whatever  happens, 
never  lose  faith  in  the  goodness  of  God.  This  has  been  my 
bane.  It  has  poisoned  my  life  here,  and  had  it  not  been 
for  this  dear  wife,  it  would  have  been  my  destruction  here- 
after. For  long  years — only  her  patient  love — has  stood 
Detween  me  and  a  miserable  end.  Next  to  God — I  com- 
mit her  and  your  little  sisters  to  your  care.  Be  true  to 
this  most  sacred  trust." 

Ethel,  dear,  my  more  than  wife, — my  good  angel, — 
what  shall  I  say  to  you  ?  "  And  the  man's  lip  quivered,  and 
for  a  time  he  could  say  no  more.  But  an  unwonted  com- 
posure had  come  into  his  wife's  manner.  The  eyes  were 
gaining  that  intent  look  which  was  their  expression  when 
picturing  to  herself  scenes  in  the  life  beyond. 

"  O  Dennis,  we  seem  just  on  the  confines  of  a  glorious 
world, — it  is  so  near,  so  real — it  seems  as  if  but  a  step 
would  take  us  all  into  it.  O  if  you  could  but  see  its  beau- 
ties, its  glories, — if  you  could  hear  the  music,  you  would 
not  fear  to  enter.  It  seems  as  if  we  were  there  together 
nov." 

"O  Ethel,  come  back,  come  back,"  cried  her  husband 
piteously.  "  I  am  not  worthy  of  all  that.  I  have  no  heart 
for  glory  now.     I  can  see  only  my  Savour's  face  looking — 

2 


«3  BARRIERS  BURNED   AWAY. 

at  me — ^with  love  and  forgiveness.  That  is  heaven  enough 
for  me, — and  when  you  come — my  cup  will  be  more  than 
full.     And  now — farewell — for  a  little  while." 

For  a  few  moments  they  clung  to  each  other.  Then 
the  little  girls  were  brought,  and  their  father  pressed  his 
cold  lips  to  their  warm,  fresh  young  faces,  wondering  at  a 
scene  they  could  not  understand,  and  tearful  because  of 
the  tears  of  others. 

He  was  now  going  very  fast.  Suddenly  he  turned  to 
his  son  and  said, 

"  Dennis,  repeat  to  me  that  verse,  *  This  is  a  faithful 
saying.' " 

With  a  hoarse  voice  and  broken  by  emotion,  his  son 
complied — 

"  This  is  a  faithful  saying,  and  worthy  of  all  accepta- 
tion, that  Christ  Jesus  came  into  the  world  to  save  sinners." 

"  Of  whom  I  am  the  chief,"  said  his  father  emphatically. 

"  And  yet " — his  face  lighting  up  with  a  wan  smile,  like 
a  sudden  ray  of  light  falling  on  a  clouded  landscape  before 
the  sun  sinks  below  the  horizon — "  and  yet  forgiven." 

By  and  bye  he  again  whispered — 

"  Forgiven  ! " 

Then  his  eyes  closed,  and  all  was  still.  They  thought 
he  was  gone.  But  as  they  stood  over  him  in  awed,  breath- 
less silence,  his  I'ps  again  moved.  Bending  down,  they 
heard  in  faint,  fai  away  tones,  like  an  echo  from  the  other 
side, 

"  Forgiven  I " 


LAUNCHED.  tj 


CHAPTER  III. 

LAUNCHED. 

ScARCEL/  was  the  last  word  spoken  when  a  sudden  glcry 
filled  the  room.  So  brilliant  was  the  light  that  mother 
and  son  vvere  startled.  Then  they  saw  what  had  been  un- 
noted before,  that  day  had  broken,  and  that  the  sun, 
emerging  from  a  single  dark  cloud,  was  shining,  full 
orbed,  into  the  apartment  with  a  light  that,  reflected  from 
myriads  of  snowy  crystals,  was  doubly  luminous.  Never- 
theless it  seemed  to  them  a  good  omen,  an  earnest,  an 
emblem  of  the  purer,  whiter  light  into  which  his  cleansed 
and  pardoned  spirit  had  entered.  The  snow-wrapped 
prairie  was  indeed  pure  and  bright,  but  it  was  cold,  whereas 
no  tropical  Summer  was  ever  so  warm  as  the  Father's  em- 
brace, receiving  home  the  long  absent,  erring,  but  for- 
given child. 

Though  the  bereaved  wife  believed  that  a  brighter 
dawn  than  that  which  made  the  world  resplendent  around 
her,  -fcad  come  for  her  husband,  still  a  sense  of  desolation 
came  over  her,  which  only  those  can  understand  who 
have  known  the  loss  of  one  who  filled  the  greater  part  of 
time,  thought,  and  heart.  As  she  saw  her  first  and  only 
love,  the  companion  of  a  life  which,  though  hard,  still  had 
the  light  and  solace  of  mutual  affection — as  she  saw  him 
80  still,  and  realized  that  she  would  hear  him  speak  no 
more — complain  no  more — (for  even  the  weaknesses  of 
those  we  love  are  sadly  missed  after  death) — a  flood  ol 


44  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

that  natural  sorrow,  which  Christianity  consoles,  but  was 
never  designed  to  prevent,  overwhelmed  her,  and  she  gave 
way  utterly. 

Her  son  took  her  in  his  arms  and  held  her  silently, 
believing  that  unspoken  sympathy  was  worth  more  at  such 
a  time  than  any  words. 

After  the  convulsive  sobbing  had  somewhat  ceased,  he 
struck  the  right  chord  by  saying — "  Mother,  father  is  not 
lost  to  us.  He  himself  said  good-bye  only  for  a  little 
while.  Then  you  have  us  to  love  and  think  of;  and  re- 
member, what  could  we  do  without  you  ?  " 

The  unselfish  woman  would  have  tried  to  rise  from  a 
bed  of  death  to  do  anything  needed  by  her  loved  ones, 
and  this  reminding  her  of  those  still  dependent  on  her 
care,  proved  the  most  potent  of  restoratives.  She  at  once 
arose  and  said, 

"  Dennis,  you  are  right.  It  is  indeed  wrong  for  me  to 
give  way  thus,  when  I  have  so  much  to  be  thankful  for— 
so  much  to  live  for.  But,  oh  Dennis,  you  cannot  under- 
stand this  separation  of  husband  and  wife,  for  God  said, 
"  they  twain  shall  be  one  flesh ;  and  it  seems  as  if  half  my 
very  life  had  gone,  as  if  half  my  heart  had  been  wrenched 
away,  and  only  a  bleeding  fragment  left." 

The  patter  of  feet  was  heard  on  the  kitchen  floor;  the 
door  opened,  and  two  little  figures  in  white  trailing  night- 
gowns entered.  At  first  they  looked  in  shy  wonder  and 
perplexity  at  their  tall  brother,  whom  they  had  not -seen 
for  months,  but  at  his  familiar  voice,  recalling  many  a 
romp  and  merry  time  together,  they  rushed  to  his  arms 
as  of  old. 

'^I'hen  they  drew  near  the  bed  to  give  their  father  his 
iccuitomed  morning  kiss ;  but  as  they  approached,  he 
seemed  so  still  that  awe  began  to  creep  over  their  little 
faces.  A  dim  recollection  of  the  farewell  kiss  given  a  few 
hours  before,  when  scarcely  awake,  recurred  to  them. 


LAUNCHED. 


25 


"  Father,"  said  the  eldest,  (about  five),  "  we  want  to 
give  you  good-morning  kiss." 

Seldom  had  their  father  been  so  sick  or  irritable  but 
that  he  reached  out  his  arms  to  his  little  ones  and  gave 
them  a  warm  embrace  that  soothed  and  did  him  more 
good  than  he  realized.  The  influence  of  trusting  chil- 
dren is  sometime.s  the  most  subtile  oil  that  can  be  thrown 
on  the  troubled  waters  of  life. 

But  as  the  little  ones  saw  that  their  father  made  no  re- 
sponse to  their  approach  and  appeal,  they  timidly  drew  a 
step  nearer,  and  looked  into  his  wasted,  yet  peaceful  face, 
with  its  closed  eyes  and  motionless  repose,  and  then  turn- 
ing to  their  mother,  said  in  a  loud  whisper,  with  faces  full 
of  perplexity  and  trouble, 

"  Is  papa  asleep  ?  " 

The  little  figures  in  their  white  drapery,  standing  over 
their  dead  father,  waiting  to  perform  the  usual,  well-re- 
membered household  rite,  proved  a  scene  too  touching 
for  the  poor  mother's  self-control,  and  again  she  gave  way 
to  an  irresistible  burst  of  sorrow.  But  her  son,  true  to 
his  resolution  to  be  the  stay  and  strength  of  the  family, 
hastened  to  the  children,  and  taking  them  by  the  hand, 
said  gently, 

"  Yes,  little  ones,  papa  is  asleep.  It  may  be  a  long 
time  before  he  wakes  up,  but  he  surely  will  by-and-by,  and 
then  he  will  never  be  sick  any  more.  Come,  we  will  go 
into  the  other  room  and  sing  a  pretty  hymn  about  papa's 
sleep." 

The  thought  of  hearing  their  brother  sing,  lured  them 
away  at  once,  for  he  had  a  mellow  tenor  voice  that  seemed 
to  the  little  girl's  sweeter  than  a  bird's.  A  moment  latej 
the  widow's  heart  was  comforted  by  hearing  those  words 
that  have  been  balm  for  so  many  wounds : 
"  Asleep  in  Jesus  !  blessed  sleep  ! 
From  which  none  ever  wakes  to  weep." 


26  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

Then  putting  on  his  sisters'  flannel  wrappers,  he  sat 
them  down  by  the  fire,  telling  stories  in  the  meantime  to 
divert  their  thoughts  from  the  scene  they  had  just  wit- 
nessed. 

Thus  no  horror  of  death  was  suffered  to  enter  their 
young  minds.  They  were  not  brought  face  to  face  with  a 
dreadful  mystery  they  could  not  understand,  but  which 
would  leave  a  sinister  impression  for  life.  Gradually  they 
would  learn  the  truth,  but  still  the  first  impression  would 
remain,  and  their  father's  death  would  ever  be  to  them  a 
sleep  from  which  he  would  wake  by-and-by,  "  never  to  be 
sick  any  more." 

He  set  about  preparations  for  their  simple  morning 
meal  so  deftly  and  easily  as  to  show  that  it  was  no  unac- 
customed task.  A  sister  older  than  himself  had  died 
while  yet  an  infant,  leaving  a  heartache  till  he  came — 
God's  best  remedy.  Then  two  sisters  had  died  after  his 
day,  and  he  was  compelled  to  be  to  his  mother  daughter 
as  well  as  son,  to  make  himself  useful  in  every  household 
task.  His  father  had  been  wrapped  up  in  useless  inven- 
tions, vain  enterprises,  and  was  much  away.  So  mother 
and  son  were  constantly  together.  He  had  early  become 
a  great  comfort  and  help  to  her,  God  blessing  her  in  this 
vital  respect,  though  her  lot  seemed  hard  in  other  ways. 
Thus  while  he  had  the  heart  and  courage  of  a  man,  he  also 
had  the  quick,  supple  hand  and  gentle  bearing  of  a  woman, 
when  occasion  required.  As  proof  of  his  skill,  a  tempting 
meal  from  the  simplest  materials  was  placed  smoking  on 
the  table,  and  the  little  girls  were  soon  chatting  content- 
edly over  their  breakfast.  In  the  meantime  the  wife  with- 
in had  drawn  near  her  dead  husband  and  taken  his  cold 
hand.  For  awhile  she  dwelt  on  the  past  in  strong  and 
tf*a;f.:l  agony,  then  in  accordance  with  long-established 
habit,  her  thoughts  went  forward  into  the  future.  In  im- 
agination she  was  present  at  her  husband's  reception   in 


LAUNCHED. 


«7 


heaven.  The  narrow,,  meagre  room  melted  away,  and  her 
feet  seemed  on  the  "  golden  pavement."  The  jubiknt 
clash  of  heavenly  cymbals  thrilled  her  heart.  She  seemed 
taking  part  in  a  triumphal  march,  led  by  celestial  minstrel- 
sy, toward  the  throne.  She  saw  her  husband  mouiit  lis 
white  glistening  steps,  so  changed,  and  yet  so  like  h's 
former  self  when  full  of  love,  youth  and  hope.  He  ap- 
peared overwhelmed  with  a  sense  of  unworthiness,  but  his 
reception  was  all  the  more  kind  and  reassuring.  Then 
as  he  departed  from  the  royal  presence,  crowned  with 
God's  love  and  favor  forever,  though  he  had  all  heaven 
before  him,  he  seemed  looking  for  her  as  that  he  longed 
for  most,  and  her  strong  effort  to  reach  his  side  aroused 
her  from  her  revery  as  from  a  dream.  But  her  vision  had 
strengthened  her,  as  was  ever  the  case,  and  the  bitterness 
of  grief  was  past.  Imprinting  along  kiss  on  her  husband's 
cold  forehead,  she  joined  her  family  in  the  outer  room  witlj 
calm  and  quiet  mien.  Her  son  saw  and  understood  the 
change  in  his  mother's  manner,  and  from  long  experience 
knew  its  cause. 

We  need  not  dwell  on  what  followed — preparations  for 
burial,  the  funeral,  the  return  to  a  home  from  which  one 
who  had  filled  so  large  a  place  had  gone — a  home  on 
which  rested  the  shadow  of  death.  These  are  old  familiar 
scenes,  acted  over  and  over  every  day,  and  yet  in  the  little 
households  where  they  occur  there  is  a  terrible  sense  of 
novelty  as  if  then  happening  for  the  first  time.  The  fam- 
ily feel  as  if  they  were  passing  through  a  chaotic  period, 
the  old  world  breaking  up  and  vanishing,  and  a  new  for- 
mation and  combination  of  all  elements  that  make  up  life, 
taking  place. 

Four  days  after  the  death  a  small  procession  passed 
from  the  farmhouse  to  the  church,  and  from,  thence  to  the 
graveyard.  Shivering  with  cold,  on  the  bleak  snow-clad 
prairie,  they  laid  away  in  the  frozen  earth  the  body  of  one 


«8  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

who  was  himself  in  the  warmth  and  comfort  of  the  "  Fath- 
er's house." 

Many  changes  followed.  Their  country  home  and 
farm  was  given  up  and  sold.  Part  of  a  small  house  in  the 
village  had  been  rented  as  their  future  residence.  A  very 
small  annuity  from  some  property  in  the  East,  left  by  her 
father,  and  Dennis's  labor,  were  all  the  family  had  to  de- 
pend on  now — a  meagre  prospect  for  the  present. 

But  Dennis  was  very  sanguine.  For  in  this  respect 
he  had  his  father's  temperament.  The  world  was  all  before 
him,  and  Chicago,  the  young  and  giant  city  of  the  West, 
seemed  an  Eldorado,  where  fortune,  and  perhaps  fame, 
might  soon  be  won.  Not  only  would  he  place  the  family 
beyond  want,  but  surround  them  with  every  luxury. 

Dennis,  wise  and  apt  as  far  as  his  knowledge  went,  was 
in  some  respects  as  simpl9»and  ignorant  as  a  child.  There 
were  many  phases  and  conditions  of  society  of  which  he 
had  never  dreamed.  Of  the  ways  of  the  rich  and  fashion- 
able, of  the  character  of  artificial  life,  he  had  not  the 
remotest  experience.  He  could  not  see  nor  understand 
the  distinctions  and  barriers  that  to  the  world  are  more 
impassable  than  those  of  ignorance,  stupidity,  arid  even 
gross  immorality.  He  would  learn  to  his  infinite  surprise, 
that  even  in  a  Western  democratic  city,  men  would  be 
welcomed  in  society,  whose  hand  no  pure  woman  or  hon- 
orable man  ought  to  touch,  while  he,  a  gentleman  by  birth, 
education,  and  especially  character,  would  not  be  recog- 
nized at  all.  He  would  discover  that  wealth  and  the 
endorsement  of  a  few  fashionable  people,  though  all  else 
were  lacking,  would  be  a  better  passport  than  the  noblest 
qualities  and  fine  abilities.  Of  course  there  must  be  out- 
ward polish.  In  the  former  case,  entrance  would  be 
secur'^d  al  once  through  the  jealously  guarded  barriers ; 
it;  the  latter  it  must  be  won  inch  by  inch. 

As  we  follow  him  from  the   seclusion    of  his  simple 


LAUNCHED. 


«9 


country  home  out  into  the  complicated  Hfe  of  the  world, 
all  this  will  become  apparent. 

Long  and  earnest  was  the  conversation  between  moth- 
er and  son  before  they  separated.  Pure  and  noble  were 
the  maxims  that  she  sought  to  instill  into  his  mind.  They 
may  not  have  been  worldly  wise,  but  they  were  heavenly 
wise.  Though  some  of  her  advice  in  the  letter  might  avail 
little,  since  she  knew  less  of  the  world  than  her  son,  still 
in  its  spirit  it  contained  the  best  of  all  wisdom,  profitable 
for  this  life  and  the  life  to  come.  But  she  sent  him  forth 
to  seek  his  fortune  and  theirs  with  less  solicitude  than  most 
mothers  have  just  cause  to  feel,  for  she  knew  that  he  had 
Christian  principle,  and  had  passed  through  a  discipline 
that  had  sobered  and  matured  him  far  beyond  his  years. 
She  saw  however  in  every  word  and  act  his  father's  san- 
guine temperament.  He  was  expecting  much,  hoping  faf 
more,  and  she  feared  that  he  also  was  destined  to  many  a 
bitter  disappointment.  Still  she  believed  that  he  possessed 
a  good  strong  substratum  of  Common  sense,  which,  com- 
bined with  the  lessons  of  faith  and  patience  that  God 
had  taught  him,  would  prove  the  ballast  his  father  had 
lacked. 

She  sought  to  modify  his  towering  hopes  and  rose-col- 
ored visions,  but  to  little  purpose.  Young,  buoyant,  in 
splendid  health,  with  a  surplus  of  warm  blood  tingling  in 
every  vein,  how  could  he  take  a  prudent,  distrustful  view 
of  the  world .''  It  seemed  to  beckon  him  smilingly  into 
any  path  of  success  he  might  choose.  Had  not  many  won 
the  victory  ?  and  who  ever  felt  braver  and  more  deter- 
mined than  he,  with  the  needs  of  the  dear  ones  at  home 
added  to  his  own  incentives  and  ambitions  ?  So,  with 
many  embraces,  lingering  kisses  and  farewell  words,  that 
lost  not  their  meaning  though  said  over  and  over  again, 
they  parted.  The  stage  carried  him  to  the  nearest  rail- 
way station,  and  the  express  train  bore  him  rapidly  toward 

2* 


30  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

the  great  city  where  he  expected  to  find  all  that  a  man's 
heart  most  craves  on  earth. 

Sanguine  as  his  father,  constant  as  his  mother,  with  a 
nature  that  would  go  right  or  wrong  with  tremendous  t^n- 
ergy,  as  direction  might  be  given  it,  he  was  destined  to 
live  no  tame,  colorless  life,  but  would  either  enjoy  much, 
or  else  suffer  much.  But  to  his  young  heart,  swelling  with 
hopes,  burning  with  zeal  to  distinguish  himself  and  pro- 
vide for  those  he  was  leaving,  even  the  bleak  snow-clad 
prairie  seemed  an  arena  in  which  he  might  accomplish  a 
vague  something. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

COLD    WATER. 

The  train,  somewhat  impeded  by  snow,  landed  Dennis 
in  Chicago  about  nine  P.  m.  In  his  pocket  he  had  ten 
dollars,  ample  seed  corn, he  believed,  for  a  golden  harvest. 
This  large  sum  was  expected  to  provide  for  him  till  he 
found  a  situation,  and  received  the  first  instalment  of  sal- 
ary. He  would  inform  his  employer,  when  he  found  him, 
how  he  was  situated,  and  ask  to  be  paid  early  and  often. 

Without  a  misgiving  he  shouldered  the  little  trunk 
that  contained  his  wordly  effects,  and  stalked  off  to  a  neigh- 
boring hotel,  that,  from  its  small  proportions,  suggested  a 
modest  bill.  With  a  highly  important  mf>n-of-the-world 
manner  he  scrawled  his  name  in  an  illegible,  student-like 
hand  on  the  dingy  dog-eared  register.  With  a  gracious, 
condescenclino;  air  he  ordered  the  filthy,  tobacco-stained 
porler  to  take  his  trunk  to  his  room. 

Tlie  bar-room  was  the  only  place  provided  for  stran- 
gers.    Regarding  the  bar  with  a  holy  horror,  he  got  away 


COLD   WATER.  3I 

from  it  as  far  as  possible,  and  seated  himself  by  the  stove, 
on  which  simmered  a  kettle  of  hot-water,  for  the  concoc- 
tion of  punches,  which  seemed  more  in  demand  at  that 
hotel  than  beds.  Becoming  disgusted  with  the  profanity 
and  obscenity  down  stairs,  he  sought  refuge  in  the  cold, 
miserable  little  room  assigned  to  him.  Putting  on  his 
overcoat,  he  wrapped  himself  up  in  a  coverlid  and  threw 
himself  down  on  the  outside  of  the  bed. 

The  night  passed  slowly.  He  was  too  uncomfortable, 
too  excited  to  sleep.  The  scenes  of  the  past  blended  con- 
fusedly with  visions  of  the  future,  and  it  was  nearly  morn- 
ing when  he  fell  into  an  unquiet  slumber. 

When  at  last  aroused  by  the  shriek  of  a  locomotive,  he 
found  that  the  sun  was  up  and  shining  on  the  blotched 
and  broken  wall  above  him.  A  few  moments  sufficed  for 
his  toilet,  and  yet,  with  his  black  curling  hair,  noble  fore- 
head, and  dark,  silken  upper  lip,  many  an  exquisite  would 
have  envied  the  result. 

His  plan  was  simple  enough — dictated  indeed  by  the 
necessities  of  the  case.  He  must  at  once  find  a  situauou 
in  which  he  could  earn  sufficient  to  support  his  mother  »  " d 
sisters  and  himself.  Thence  he  could  look  around  till  ha 
found  some  calling  that  promised  most.  Having  left  col 
lege  and  given  up  his  chosen  profession  of  the  law,  he  had 
resolved  to  adopt  any  honest  pursuit  that  seemed  to  lead 
most  quickly  to  fortune. 

Too  impatient  to  eat  his  breakfast,  he  sallied  forth  into 
the  great  city,  knowing  not  a  soul  in  it.  His  only  recom- 
mendations and  credentials  were  his  young,  honest  face, 
and -a  letter  from  his  minister,  saying  that  he  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  church  in  Blankville,  "  in  good  and  regular 
standing,"  and,  "  as  far  as  he  knew,  a  most  worthy  young 
rnan  ;  " — rather  meagre  capital  amid  the  competitions  of 
2.  large  city.  But,  with  courage  bold  and  high,  he  strode 
off  toward  the  business  part  of  the  town. 


32  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

As  he  passed  the  ddpot  it  occurred  to  him  that  an 
opening  might  exist  there.  It  would  be  a  good  post  of 
observation,  and  perhaps  he  would  be  able  to  slip  home 
oftener.  So  he  stopped  and  asked  the  man  in  the  ticket- 
offce  blandly, 

"  Do  you  wish  to  employ  a  young  man  in  connection 
with  this  depot  or  road  in  any  capacity  ?  " 

The  ticket-man  stared  at  him  a  moment  through  his 
window,  frowned,  and  curtly  said, 

"  No  !  " 

Then  went  on  counting,  what  seemed  to  poor  Dennis, 
millions  of  money.  The  man  had  no  right  to  say  yes  or 
no,  since  he  was  a  mere  official,  occupying  his  own  fittle 
niche,  with  no  authority  beyond.  But  an  inveterate  feud 
seemed  to  exist  between  this  man  and  the  public.  He 
acted  as  if  the  world  in  general,  instead  of  any  one  in  par- 
ticular, had  greatly  wronged  him.  It  might  be  a  meek 
woman  with  a  baby,  or  a  bold,  red-faced  drover,  a  deli- 
cately-gloved or  horny  hand  that  reached  him  the  change, 
but  it  was  all  the  same.  He  knitted  his  brows,  pursed  up 
his  mouth,  and  dealt  with  them  in  a  quick,  jerking  way,  as 
if  he  could  not  bear  the  sight  of  them,  and  wanted  to  be 
rid  of  them  as  soon  as  possible.  Still  these  seem  just  the 
peculiarities  that  find  favor  with  railroad  corporations,  and 
the  man  would  probably  vent  his  spite  against  the  public 
throughout  his  natural  life. 

From  him,  however,  Dennis  received  his  first  dash  of 
cold  water,  which  he  minded  but  little,  and  went  on  his 
way  with  a  good-natured  laugh  at  the  crusty  old  fellow. 

He  was  soon  in  the  business  part  of  the  city.  Apply- 
ing at  a  large  dry  goods  store,  he  was  told  that  they  wanted 
a  cash  boy  ;  "  but  he  would  not  do — one  quarter  his  size 
would  answer." 

•' Tlieii  I  will  go  where  they  want  the  other  three- 
fourths  and  pay  accordingly,  said  Dennis,  and  stalked  out 


COLD   WATER-  33 

He  continued  applying  at  every  promising  place,  hut 
to  no  purpose.  It  was  mid-winter  ;  trade  was  dull ;  and 
with  clerks  idling  about  the  stores,  employers  were  in  no 
mood  to  add  to  their  number. 

At  last  he  found  a  place  where  an  assistant  book- 
keeper was  wanted.  Dennis's  heart  sprang  up  within  him, 
but  sank  again  as  he  remembered  how  little  he  knew  of 
the  art.     But  I  can  learn  quickly,  he  thought  to  himself. 

The  nian  looked  carelessly  at  his  poor  little  letter,  and 
then  said,  in  a  business-like  tone, 

"  Show  me  a  specimen  of  your  handwriting." 

Poor  Dennis  had  never  written  a  good  hand,  but  at 
college  had  learned  to  write  a  miserable  scrawl,  in  rapidly 
taking  notes  of  lectures.  Moreover,  he  was  excited,  and 
could  not  do  himself  justice.  Even  from  his  sanguine 
heart  hope  ebbed  away ;  but  he  took  the  pen  and  scratched 
a  line  or  two,  of  which  he  himself  \?as  ashamed.  The 
man  looked  at  them  with  an  expression  of  mild  disgust, 
and  then  said — 

"  Mr.  Jones,  hand  me  your  ledger." 

The  head  book-keeper  passed  the  volume  to  his  em 
plo3'er,  who  showed  Dennis  entries  looking  as  from  cop- 
per-plate, and  quietly  remarked — 

"  The  young  man  we  employ  must  write  like  that,  and 
thoroughly  understand  book-keeping.  Good-morning, 
sir." 

Dennis  walked  out,  feeling  almost  as  crestfallen  as  if 
he  had  been  convicted  of  stealing,  but  the  noon-day  sun 
was  shining  in  the  sky,  the  streets  were  full  of  life  and 
bustle,  and  hope  revived. 

"  I  will  find  the  right  niche  before  long,"  he  said  to 
himself,  and  trudged  on. 

Some  time  after  he  entered  a  retail  dr}'goods  store. 

"Yes,  they  wanted  a  young  man  there,  but  he  was 
rather  old." 


34  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

Still  as  the  merchant  saw  that  Dennis  was  fine  looking, 
would  appear  well  behind  the  counter,  and  make  a  taking 
salesman  with  the  ladies,  he  stopped  to  parley  a  moment 
more. 

"  D:  you  understand /he  business  ?  " 

"  No  sir,  but  I  can  soon  learn,  for  I  am  young  and 
strong." 

"  Strength  is  not  what  is  needed,  but  experience. 
Ours  is  not  the  kind  of  work  for  Paddies." 

•'  Well,  sir,"  said  Dennis,  rather  shortly,  "  I'm  not  a 
Paddy." 

The  dapper  little  retailer  frowned  slightly  at  Dennis' 
tone,  and  continued. 

"  You  spoke  as  if  main  strength  was  the  principal 
thing.     Have  you  had  any  experience  at  all  ? " 

"  No  sir  !  " 

But  seeing  intelligence  in  the  young  man's  face,  and 
scenting  a  sharp  bargain,  he  said, 

"  Why  then,  you  would  have  to  begin  at  the  very  be- 
ginning, and  learn  the  name  of  everything,  its  quality,  etc." 

"  Yes  sir ;  but  I  would  do  my  very  best." 

"  Of  course,  of  course,  but  nothing  can  take  the  place 
of  experience.  I  expect,  under  the  circumstances,  you 
would  look  for  very  little  remuneration  the  first  )'ear  ?" 

"  How  much  could  you  give  .-*  " 

The  man  named  a  sum  that  would  not  have  supported 
Dennis  alone. 

He  replied  that  though  his  services  might  not  be  worth 
more  than  that,  he  was  so  situated  that  he  could  not  take 
a  very  small  salary. 

'•'Then  bring  something  besides  ignorance  to  the  mai- 
k5t,"  said  the  man,  turning  on  his  heel. 

Dennis  was  now  hungry,  tired,  and  disappointed.  In- 
deed the  calls  of  appetite  became  so  clamorous  that  he 
sought  a  cheap  restaurant.  After  demolishing  a  huge  plate 


COLD   WATER.  35 

»f  such  viands  as  could  be  had  at  little  cost,  he  sat  brood- 
ing over  a  cup  of  coffee  for  an  hour  or  more.  The  world 
wore  so  different  an  aspect  from  what  it  had  on  the  morn- 
ing, that  he  was  lost  in  a  sort  of  dull,  painful  wonder. 

But  the  abundant  meal  and  slight  element  of  coffee 
that  colored  the  luke-warm  water,  quite  heartened  him 
again.  He  resolved  to  go  back  to  his  hotel  and  find  a 
more  quiet  and  comfortable  place  in  which  to  lodge  until 
something  permanent  offered.  He  made  what  he  consid- 
ered suificient  inquiry  as  to  the  right  direction,  and  re- 
solved to  save  even  the  car-fare  of  five  cents  by  walking 
the  distance. 

But  whether  he  had  not  understood  the  directions 
rightly,  or  whether,  brooding  over  the  events  of  the  day, 
his  mind  had  been  too  preocupied  to  heed  them,  he  found 
to  his  great  disgust,  after  walking  two  or  three  miles,  that 
he  had  gone  away  instead  of  toward  his  destination.  An- 
gry with  himself,  out  of  humor  with  all  the  world,  the 
latent  obstinacy  of  his  nature  began  to  manifest  itself. 
Though  everything  went  "  contrairy,"  there  was  one  thing 
under  his  control — himself — and  he  would  make  that  do 
the  bidding  of  his  will. 

Turning  on  his  heel,  he  resolved  with  dogged  resolu- 
tion to  walk  back  the  whole  distance.  He  would  teach 
himself  a  lesson.  It  was  fine  business,  just  when  he  need- 
ed his  wits  so  sorely,  to  commence  blundering  in  this 
style.  No  wonder  he  had  failed  during  the  day  ;  he  de- 
served to  fail  in  other  respects,  since  in  this  one  he  had 
not  shown  the  good  sense  of  a  child. 

When  people  are  "  out  of  sorts,"  and  things  are  going 
wrong,  the  disposition  to  blame  somebody  or  something  is 
almost  universal.  But  we  think  that  it  will  be  found  a 
safe  general  rule,  that  the  nobler  the  nature,  the  less  wor- 
thy of  blame,  the  greater  tendency  to  blame  self  rather 
than  anything  else.     Poor  Dennis  had  no  great  cause  for 


g6  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

bitter  self-reproaches,  and  yet  he  plodded  on  with  an  in- 
tense feeling  of  self-disgust. 

To  think  that  after  New  England  schools  and  three 
years  in  college  he  should  write  such  a  hand  and  have  no 
definite  knowledge  of  book-keeping !  "  What  had  he  learn- 
ed, he'd  like  to  know  ?  "  Then  to  go  and  lose  his  way  like 
a  country  bumpkin,  as  he  was — and  he  gnawed  his  lips 
with  vexation. 

The  street-cars  glided  often  and  invitingly  by,  but  he 
would-  not  even  look  at  them. 

At  last,  foot-sore  and  fairly  aching  with  cold  and  fa- 
tigue, he  reached  the  little  hotel,  which  appeared  more 
miserable,  obscure,  and  profane  than  ever.  But  a  tempt- 
ing fiend  seemed  to  have  got  into  the  gin  and  whiskey  bot- 
tles behind  the  red-nosed  bartender.  To  his  morbid 
fancy  and  eyes,  half-blinded  with  wind  and  cold,  they  ,  ap- 
peared to  wink,  beckon,  and  suggest — 

"  Drink  and  be  merry  ;  drink  and  forget  your  troubles. 
We  can  make  you  feel  as  rich  and  glorious  as  a  prince,  in 
ten  minutes." 

For  the  first  time  in  his  life  Dennis  felt  a  strong  temp- 
tation to  drink  for  the  sake  of  the  effects.  AVhen  was  a 
man  ever  weak  that  the  devil  did  not  charge  down  upon 
him  ■* 

But  the  evil  and  ruin  wrought  in  one  case  proved  an- 
other's safeguard,  for  the  door  opened  and  a  miserable 
wreck  of  a  man  entered.  As  Dennis  looked  at  his  blotch- 
ed, sodden  face,  trembling  hand,  shuffling  gait,  and  general 
air  of  wretchedness,  embodying  and  suggesting  the  worst 
ills  of  humanity,  he  decided  not  to  drink  for  the  sake  of 
the  effects. 

Then  came  another  rush  of  self-disgust  that  he  had 
even  entertained  such  a  temptation,  and  he  flung  himseh 
off  supperless  to  bed. 

As  he  bowed  that  night  he  could  not  pray  as  usuaU" 


A   HORNET'S   NEST. 


3? 


For  anger,  passion  with  one's  self,  as  well  as  with  any  one 
else,  renders  true  prayer  impossible.  But  he  went  through 
the  form,  and  then  wrapped  himself  up  as  before.  The 
wearied  body  soon  mastered  the  perturbed  mmd,  and  he 
fell  into  d  heavy  sleep  that  lasted  till  morning. 


CHAPTER  V. 

A    hornet's    nest. 

Dennis  awoke  greatly  refreshed  and  strengthened. 
For  half  an  hour  he  lay  quietly  thinking  over  the  scenes 
of  the  preceding  day  ;  something  of  his  old  anger  return- 
ed, but  he  compressed  his  lips,  and  with  a  face  expressing 
the  most  resolute  purpose,  determined  that  the  day  before 
him  should  tell  a  different  story.  Every  faculty  and  ener- 
gy  he  possessed  should  be  skilfully  bent  to  the  attainment 
of  his  objects.  Wise  deliberation  should  precede  every- 
thing. He  would  write  a  few  lines  to  his  mother,  decide 
as  to  a  lodging  place,  and  then  seek  better  success  in  an- 
other part  of  the  city.  He  went  to  the  bar  and  inquired 
as  to  Ills  bill,  and  found  that  so  far  as  bed  and  meals  were^ 
concerned,  such  as  they  were  he  could  not  find  anything 
cheaper  in  the  city,  the  house  evidently  not  depending  on 
these  for  its  revenue.  Disgusted  as  he  was  with  his  sur- 
roundings, he  resolved  to  lose  no  time  in  looking  for  a 
new  boarding  place,  but,  after  writing  to  his  mother,  start 
off  at  once  in  search  of  something  permanent.  He  was  in 
no  mood  to  consult  personal  pleasure  or  wishes,  and  the 
saving  of  time  and  money  settled  the  question. 

Where  should  he  write  ?  There  was  no  place  save  a  desk 
at  the  end  of  the  bar.     Looking  askance  at  the  half-filled, 


38  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

villanously-smelling  bottle  at  his  elbow,  he  wrote  in  a  hand 
stiff  and  unnatural  (for  he  had  resolved  to  change  his  scrawl 
to  a  business  hand  at  once),  the  following  note  : 

Chicago,  III.,  Jan.  loth. 

"  Dear  Mother  : — I  arrived  safely,  and  am  very  well. 
I  did  not,  yesterday,  find  a  situation  suited  to  my  taste, 
but  expect  better  success  to-day.  I  am  just  on  the  point 
of  starting  out  on  my  search,  and  when  settled  will  write 
you  full  particulars.  Many  kisses  for  yourself  and  the 
little  girls.     Your  affectionate  son, 

"  Dennis." 

"  There  !  there  is  nothing  in  that  to  worry  mother,  and 
soon  I  shall  have  good  news  for  her."  If  he  had  seen  its 
reception,  he  would  have  learned  differently.  The  intu- 
itions of  love  are  keen,  and  this  formal  negative  note  in 
the  constrained  hand,  told  more  of  his  disappointment 
than  any  words.  While  he  knew  it  not,  his  mother  was 
suffering  with  him.  She  wrote  a  letter  in  reply  full  of 
general  sympathy,  intending  to  be  more  specific  when  he 
gave  her  his  confidence. 

Dennis  folded  the  letter  most  carefully  and  mailed  it — • 
for  he  was  now  doing  the  least  thing  with  the  utmost  pre- 
cision— with  the  air  of  one  who  meant  to  find  oat  the 
right  thing  to  do,  and  then  to  do  it  to  a  hair's  breadth. 
Nothing  should  go  wrong  that  day.  So  quite  early  in  the 
morning  he  again  sallied  forth. 

Not  far  from  the  hotel  there  was  a  new  grocery  store 
at  the  point  of  being  opened  by  two  young  men,  formerly 
cleiks,  but  now  setting  up  for  themselves.  They  stood  at 
the  door  receiving  a  cart  load  of  goods  as  Dennis  ap- 
proached. He  had  made  up  his  mind  to  ask  at  every  op- 
portunity, and  take  the  first  thing  that  promised  fairly;  he 
would  also  be  very  polite.     Touching  his  hat  to  the  young 


A   HORNET'S   NEST.  ^ 

men, — a  little  act  pleasing  them  in  their  newly  acquired 
dignity  of  becoming  heads  of  a  firm,  which  as  yet  had  no 
subordinates, — Dennis  asked  if  they  would  need  any  assist- 
ance. Graciously  replying  to  his  salutations,  they  an- 
swered, 

"  Yes,  they  wanted  a  young  man." 

Dennis  explained  that  he  was  from  the  country,  and 
showed  the  ministerial  letter.  The  young  ^ocers  looked 
wise  over  it,  seemed  pleased,  said  they  wanted  a  young 
fellow  from  the  country,  that  was  not  up  to  city  tricks. 
Chicago  was  a  hard  place  on  young  men — spoiled  most  of 
them.  Glad  he  was  a  member  of  the  church — they  were 
not,  but  believed  a  man  must  be  mighty  good  to  be  one. 
As  the  young  man  they  hired  must  sleep  in  the  store,  they 
wanted  one  they  could  trust,  and  would  prefer  a  church 
member. 

The  salary  they  offered  was  not  large,  but  pretty  fair  in 
view  of  his  having  so  much  to  learn,  and  it  was  intimated, 
that  if  business  was  good,  and  he  suited,  it  would  be  in- 
creased. The  point  uppermost  in  their  minds  seemed  to 
be  to  find  some  one  with  whom  they  could  trust  their  store 
and  goods,  and  this  young  man  from  the  country,  with  a 
letter  from  a  minister,  seemed  a  God-send. 

They  engaged  him,  but  just  as  he  was  starting,  with' 
heart  swelling  with  self-satisfaction  and  joy,  one  of  the 
firm  asked  carelessly, 

"  Where  are  you  staying  ? " 

"  At  Gamblin's  Hotel." 

The  man  turned  sharply,  and  looked  most  suspiciously 
at  him,  and  then  at  his  partner,  who  gave  a  low  whistle  of 
surprise,  and  also  eyed  the  young  man  for  a  moment 
ailfance.  Then  the  men  stepped  aside,  and  there  was  a 
bnef  whispered  consultation.  Dennis's  heart  sank  within 
him.     He  saw  that  something  was  wrong,  but  what,  he 


40  BARRIERS   BUKNED   AWAY. 

had  not  the  least  idea.     The  elder  member  of  the  embtyo 
firm  now  stepped  up  and  said  decidedly, 

"  Good-morning,  young  man ;  we  shall  not  need  youi 
services." 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?  "  cried  Dennis  in  a  voice  of 
mingled  dismay  and  indignation. 

The  man's  face  was  growing  red  as  with  anger,  but  he 
said  coldly, 

"  You  had  better  move  on.      We  understand." 

"  But  /  don't  understand,  and  your  course  toward  me 
is  most  unjust." 

Look  here  young  man,  we  are  too  old  birds  to  be 
caught  by  any  such  light  chaff  as  you  have  got  about  you. 
You  are  a  pretty  church  member,  you  are !  You  are  a 
smart  one,  you  are ;  nice  boy,  just  from  the  country  ;  sup- 
pose you  do  not  know  that'Gamblin's  Hotel  is  the  worst 
gambling  hole  in  the  city,  and  every  other  man  that  goes 
there  a  known  thief  Come,  you  had  better  move  on  if 
you  do  not  want  to  get  into  trouble.  You  will  make  noth- 
ing here." 

"  But  I  tell  you,  gentlemen,"  cried  Dennis,  eagerly — 

"  You  may  tell  what  you  please.  We  tell  you  that  we 
would  not  believe  any  one  from  that  den  under  oath. 
Now  you  leave  !  " 

The  last  words  were  loud  and  threatening.  The  at- 
tention of  passers-by  was  drawn  toward  them,  and  Dennis* 
saw  that  further  words  were  useless.  In  the  minds  of 
shrewd,  but  narrow  business  men,  not  over  honest  them- 
selves, more  acquainted  with  the  trickery  of  the  world 
than  its  virtues,  suspicion  against  any  one  is  fatal,  and 
most  assuredly  so  against  a  stranger  with  appearances  un- 
favorable. * 

With  heart  well  nigh  bursting  with  anger,  disappoint- 
ment, and  shame,  Dennis  hastened  away.  He  had  been 
regarded  as  a  thief,  or    at  best  a  blackleg,  seeking   the 


A   CORNETS   NEST.  ,  41 

position  for  some  sinister  purpose.  This  was  the  opening 
scene  of  the  day  on  which  he  determined  that  no  mistakes 
should  be  made,  and  here  at  the  outset  he  had  allowed 
himself  to  be  identified  with  a  place  of  notorious  ill-repute. 

Reaching  the  hotel,  he  rushed  up-stairs,  got  his  trunk, 
and  then  turned  fiercely  on  th§  red-nosed  bartender — 

"  Why  did  you  not  tell  me  what  kind  of  a  place  this 
was  ? " 

"  What  kind  of  a  place  is  it  ? "  asked  that  functionary, 
coolly,  arms  akimbo. 

"  You  knew  well  enough.  You  knew  I  was  not  one 
of  your  sort." 

"  You  do  not  mean  to  say  that  this  is  a  bad  place,  do 
you  ?  "   said  the  barkeeper  in  mock  solemnity. 

"  Yes,  the  worst  in  Chicago.     There  is  your  money." 

"  Hold  on  here,  my  small  chicken,  there  is  some  mon- 
ey, but  not  enough  by  a  jug  full.  I  want  five  dollars  out 
of  you  before  you  take  that  trunk  off." 

"  Why,  this  is  sheer  robbery,"  exclaimed  Dennis. 

"O  no;  just  keeping  up  the  reputation  of  the  house. 
You  say  it  is  the  worst  in  Chicago — must  try  and  keep  up 
our  reputation." 

"Little  fear  of  that;  I  will  not  pay  it,"  and  Dennis 
started  for  his  trunk. 

"  Here,  let  that  trunk  alone  ;  and  if  yer  do  not  give  nie 
that  five  dollars  cussed  quick,  I'll  put  a  head  on  yer,"  and 
he  of  the  red  nose  put  his  hands  on  the  bar  in  readiness 
to  spring  over. 

"  I  say,  young  feller,"  said  a  good-natured  loafer  stand- 
ing by,  "  you  had  better  gin  him  the  five  dollars ;  for 
Barney  is  the  worst  one  in  all  Chicago  to  put  a  head  on 
a  man." 

"  And  will  you  stand  by  and  see  this  outrage  ?  "  said 
Dennis,  appealing  to  him. 

"  O  gosh !  "  said  the  man,  "  I've  got  quarrels  'nough  of 


42  ,      BARRIERS   BURNED  AWAY. 

my  own  -without  getting  my  head  broke  for  fellers  I  dou't 
know. " 

Dennis  was  almost  speechless  from  indignation.  Con- 
scious of  strength,  his  strong  impulse  for  a  moment  was  to 
spring  at  the  throat  of  the  barkeeper  and  vent  his  rage  on 
him.  For  there  is  a  latent  tiger  in  every  man.  But  a  hand 
seemed  to  hold  him  back,  and  a  sober  second  thought  came 
over  him.  What!  Dennis  Fleet,  the  son  of  Ethel  Fleet,  and 
a  professing  Christian,  brawling,  fighting  in  a  bar-room, 
a  gambling  den,  and  going  out  to  seek  a  situation  that 
required  confidence  and  fair -appearing,  all  blackened, 
bruised  and  bleeding.  As  the  truth  flashed  upon  him,  in 
strong  revulsion  of  feeling,  he  fairly  turned  pale  and  sick. 

"  There's  the  money,"  said  he,  hoarsely,  "  and  God  for- 
give you." 

In  a  moment  he  had  taken  his  trunk  and  was  gone. 
The  barkeeper  stared  after  him,  and  then  looked  at  the 
money  with  a  troubled  and  perplexed  face. 

"  Wal,"  said  he,  "  I'm  used  enough  to  havin'  folks  ask 
God  to  damn  me,  but  I'm  blessed  if  I  ever  had  one  to  ask 
him  to  forgive  me,  before.  I'm  plagued,"  said  he  after  a 
moment,  as  the  thought  grew  upon  him,  "  I'm  plagued  if  I 
wouldn't  give  him  back  the  money  if  he  hadn't  gone  so 
quick." 

With  heart  full  of  shame  and  bitterness,  Dennis  hasten- 
ed down  the  street.  At  the  corner  he  met  a  policeman, 
and  told  him  his  story.      All  the  satisfaction  he  got  was — ■ 

"  You  ought  not  to  go  to  such  a  place.  But  you're 
lucky  if  they  only  took  five  dollars  from  you;  they  don't  let 
off  many  as  easy  as  that." 

"  Can  I  have  no  redress .''  " 

"  Now  look  here  ;  it's  a  pretty  ticklish  thing  to  interfere 
with  them  fellers.  It'll  cost  you  plaguey  sight  more'n  that, 
and  blood,  too,  like  enough.  If  you'll  take  my  advice,  you 
wont  stir  up  that  hornet's  nest." 


-STARVE  THEN!'  43 


CHAPTER  VI. 

"starve    then!" 

Dennis  now  followed  the  natural  impulse  to  go  to 
some  distant  part  of  the  city,  entirely  away  from  the  re- 
gion that  had  become  so  hateful  to  him.  Putting  the 
trunk  on  the  front  of  a  street-car,  he  rode  on  till  in  the 
heart  of  the  south  side  district,  the  great  business  centre. 
He  took  his  trunk  into  a  wide,  roomy  hardware  store,  and 
asked  if  he  might  leave  it  there  awhile.  Receiving  a  good- 
natured  permission,  he  next  started  off"  in  search  of  a 
quiet,  cheap  boarding  place.  Hk  heart  was  heavy,  and 
yet  he  felt  thankful  to  have  escaped  as  he  had,  for  the 
thought  of  what  might  have  been  his  experience  if  Barney 
had  tried  to  fulfil  his  threat,  sickened  him.  The  rough 
was  as  strong  as  he,  and  scenes  of  violence  were  his  de- 
light and  daily  experience.  He  rather  gloried  in  a  black 
eye,  for  he  always  gave  two  in  exchange,  and  his  own 
bruised,  swollen  member  paved  the  way  gracefully  for  the 
telling  of  his  exploits,  as  it  awakened  inquiry  from  the  les- 
ser lights  among  whom  Barney  shone.  But  what  would 
Dennis  have  done  among  the  merchants  with  "  a  head  on 
him,"  as  the  barkeeper  understood  the  phrase  ?  He  would 
have  to  return  home,  and  that  he  felt  was  worse  than 
death.  In  fact,  he  came  nearer  to  a  desperate  struggle 
than  he  knew,  for  Barney  rarely  resisted  so  inviting  an 
opportunity  to  indulge  his  pugilistic  turn,  and  had  he  not 
seen  the  policeman  going  by  just  at  that  time,  there  would 
have  been  no  idle  threats  in  the  case. 


44  BARRIERS  BURNED   AWAY. 

Dennis  set  his  teeth  with  dogged  resolution,  determin- 
ed to  persevere  in  his  search  till  he  dropped  in  the  street 
if  necessary.  But  as  he  remembered  that  he  had  less 
than  five  dollars  left,  and  no  prospect  of  earning  another, 
his  heart  grew  like  lead. 

He 'spent  several  weary  hours  in  the  vain  search  for  a 
boarding  house.  He  had  little  to  guide  him  save  short 
answers  from  policemen.  The  places-  were  either  too  ex- 
pensive, or  else  they  were  so  coarse  and  low  that  he  could 
not  bring  himself  to  endure  them.  In  some  cases  he  de- 
tected that  they  were  accompanied  by  worse  evils  than 
gambling.  Almost  in  despair,  tired,  and  very  hungry  (for 
severe  indeed  must  be  the  troubles  that  will  affect  the  ap- 
petite of  healthful  youth  on  a  cold  winter  day),  he  stopped 
at  a  small  German  restaurant  and  hotel  in  a  side  street 
near  where  he  had  left  his  trunk.  A  round-faced,  jolly 
Teuton  served  him  with  a  large  plate  of  cheap  viands,  which 
he  cleared  so  quickly  and  asked  for  more,  that  the  man 
stared  at  him  for  a  moment,  and  then  stolidly  obeyed. 

"  What  do  you  ask  for  a  small  room  and  bed  for  a 
night?"  said  Dennis. 

"Zwei  shillen,"  said  the  waiter  with  a  grin  ;  "  zat  is  if 
you  don't  vant  as  big  bed  as  dinner.  Ve  haf  zwei  shillen 
for  bed,  and  zwei  shillen  for  every  meal — von  dollar  a  day — 
sheap !  " 

The  place  was  comparatively  clean,  A  geranium  or 
two  bloomed  in  the  window,  and  lager  instead  of  fiery  whis- 
ky seemed  the  principal  beverage  vended.  Dennis  went 
out  and  made  inquiries,  and  every  one  in  the  neighbor- 
hood spoke  of  it  as  a  quiet,  respectable  place,  though  fre- 
quented only  by  laboring  people.  "  That  is  nothing  against 
it,"  thought  Dennis.  "I  will  venture  to  stay  there  for  a 
night  or  two,  for  I  must  lose  no  more  time  in  looking  for 
a  situation." 

He  took  his  trunk  there,  and  then  spent  the  rest  of  the 


"STARVE   THEN! 


45 


day  in  unavailing  search.  He  found  nothing  that  gave  any 
promise  at  all.  In  the  evening  he  went  to  a  large  hotel 
and  looked  over  the  files  of  papers.  He  found  a  few  ad- 
vertising for  clerks  and  experts  of  various  kinds,  but  more 
seeking  places.  But  he  noted  down  everything  hopeful, 
and  resolved  that  he  would  examine  the  morning  papers 
by  daylight  for  anything  new  in  that  line,  and  be  the  first 
on  hand.  His  new  quarters,  though  plain  and  meagre, 
were  at  least  clean  Too  weary  to  think  or  even  to  feel 
more  than  a  dull  ache  in  his  heart,  h^  went  through  the 
form  of  devotion,  and  slept  heavily  till  the  dawn  of  the 
following  day.  Poor  fellow !  it  seemed  to  him  that  he  had 
lived  years  in  those  two  days. 

He  was  up  by  daylight,  and  found  a  few  more  adver- 
tisements that  looked  as  if  they  might  lead  to  something. 
As  early  as  it  was  possible  to  see  the  parties,  he  was  on 
the  ground,  but  others  were  there  as  soon  as  himself. 
They  had  the  advantage  of  some  knowledge  and  experi- 
ence in  the  duties  required,  and  this  decided  the  question. 
Some  spoke  kindly,  and  suggested  that  he  was  better  fitted 
for  teaching  than  business. 

"  But  where  am  I  to  find  a  position  at  this  season  of 
the  year,  when  every  place  is  filled  ?  "  explained  Dennis. 
"  It  might  be  weeks  before  I  could  get  anything  to  do,  and 
I  must  have  employment  at  once." 

They  were  sorry — hoped  he  would  do  well — turned 
away  and  went  on  doing  well  for  themselves.  But  the 
majority  merely  satisfied  themselves  that  he  would  not  an- 
swer their  purpose,  and  bade  him  a  brief,  business-like 
good-morning.  And  yet  the  fine  young  face,  so  troubled 
and  anxious,  haunted  a  good  many  of  those  who  summa- 
lily  dismissed  him.     But  "  business  is  business." 

The  day  passed  in  fruitless  incjuiry.  Now  and  then  he 
seemed  on  the  point  of  succeeding,  but  only  disappoint- 
ment resulted.  There  were  at  that  season  of  the  year  few 
3 


46  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY 

situations  offering  where  a  living  salary  was  p'Sid,  and  for 
these  skilled  laborers  were  required.  Dennis  possessed 
no  training  for  any  one  calling,  save  perhaps  that  of 
teacher.  He  had  m.erely  the  fragment  of  a  good  general 
education,  tending  toward  one  of  the  learned  professions, 
iie  had  fine  abilities,  and  undoubtedly  would  have  stood 
high  as  a  lawyer,  in  time.  But  now  that  he  was  suddenly 
called  upon  to  provide  bread  for  himself  and  those  he 
loved,  there  was  not  a  single  thing  of  which  he  could  say — 
"  I  .understand  this,  sir,  and  can  give  you  satisfaction." 
He  knew  that  ii  he  could  get  a  chance  at  almost  any- 
thing, he  could  soon  learn  enough  to  make  himself  more 
useful  than  the  majority  employed,  for  few  had  his  will  and 
motive  to  work.  But  the  point  was  to  find  some  one  who 
would  pay  sufficient  for  his  own  and  mother's  support 
while  he  learned. 

It  is  just  under  such  circumstances  that  so  many  men, 
and  especially  women,  make  shipwreck.  Thrown  sud- 
denly upon  their  own  resources,  they  bring  to  the  great 
labor-market  of  the  world  general  intelligence,  and'  also 
general  ignorance.  With  a  smattering  of  almost  every 
thing,  they  do  not  know  practically  how  to  do  one  thing 
well.  Skilled  hands,  though  backed  by  neither  heart  nor 
brains,  push  them  aside.  Take  the  young  men  or  the 
young  women  of  any  well-to-do  town  or  village,  and  make 
them  suddenly  dependent  upon  their  own  efforts,  and  how 
many  would  compete  in  any  one  thing  with  those  already 
engaged  in  supplying  the  market .''  And  yet  just  such 
helpless  young  creatures  are  every  day  compelled  to  shift 
for  themselves.  If  to  these  unfortunates  the  paths  of 
honest  industry  seem  hedged  and  thorny,  not  so  those  of 
sin.  They  are  easy  enough  at  first,  if  any  little  difficulty 
with  conscience  can  be  gotten  over;  and  the  devil  and 
fallen  humanity  doing  his  work,  stand  ready  to  p.ish  the 
wavering  into  them. 


"STARVE  THEN!"  47 

At  the  close  of  the  next  day,  spent  in  weary  search, 
Dennis  met  a  temptation  to  which  many  would  have  yield- 
ed. As  a  last  resort  he  had  been  going  around  among  the 
hotels,  willing  to  take  even  the  situation  of  porter,  if  noth- 
ing better  offered.  The  day  was  fast  closing,  when,  worn 
out  and  dejected,  he  entered  a  first-class  house,  and  made 
his  usual  inquiry.  The  proprietor  looked  at  him  for  a 
moment,  slapped  him  on  the  back  and  said, 

"  Yes,  you  are  the  man  I  want,  I  reckon.  Do  you 
drink  ?  no !  miglit  have  known  that  from  your  face.  Do 
not  want  a  man  that  drinks  for  this  place.  Come  along 
with  me,  then.  Will  give  you  two  and  a  half  a  day  if  you 
suit,  and  pay  you  every  night.  I  pay  my  help  promptly ; 
they  aint  near  so  apt  to  steal  from  you  then." 

And  the  man  hurried  away,  followed  by  Dennis  with 
beating  heart  and  flushed,  wondering  face.  Descending  a 
flight  of  stairs,  they  entered  a  brilliantly  lighted  basement, 
which  was  nothing  less  than  a  large,  elegantly-arranged 
bar-room,  with  card  and  lunch  tables,  and  easy  chairs 
for  the  guests  to  smoke  and  tippl^  in  at  their  leisure.  All 
along  one  side  of  this  room,  resplendent  with  cut  glass 
and  polished  silver,  ran  the  bar.  The  light  fell  warm  and 
mellow  on  the  various  kinds  of  liquors,  that  were  arranged 
as  temptingly  as  possible  to  the  thirsting  souls  frequenting 
the  place. 

Stepping  up  to  the  bulky  man  behind  the  bar  the  land- 
lord said — 

"  There,  Mr.  Swig,  is  a  young  man  who  will  fill  capital- 
ly the.  place,  of  the  chap  we  dismissed  to-day  for  getting 
tight.  You  may  bet  your  life  from  his  face  that  he  don'l 
drink.  You  can  break  him  in  in  a  few  days,  and  you  won't 
want  a  better  assistant." 

For  a  moment  a  desperate  wish  passed  through  Dennis's 
mmd,  "  O  that  wrong  were  right."  Then,  indignant  with 
himself,  he  spoke  up  firmly. 


48  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

"  I  think  I  have  a  word  to  say  in  this  mattel.** 

"  Well,  say  on,  then  ;  what's  the  trouble  ? " 

"I  cannot  do  this  kind  of  work." 

"  You  will  find  plenty  harder." 

"  None  harder  for  one  believing  as  I  do.  The  Bible 
aays  '  \\'oc  unto  him  that  giveth  his  neighbor  drink.'  1 
will  starve  before  I  will  do  this,  work." 

The  man  stared  at  him  for  a  moment,  and  then  coolly 
replied, 

"  Starve  then ! "  and  turned  on  his  heel  and  walked 
away. 

Dennis  also  rushed  from  the  place,  followed  by  the 
coarse  jeering  laugh  of  those  who  witnessed  the  scene.  In 
his  morbid,  suffering  state  their  voices  seemed  those  of 
mocking  demons. 

The  night  had  now  fallen.  He  was  too  tired  and  dis- 
couraged to  look  any  further.  Wearily  he  plodded  up  the 
street,  facing  the  bitter  blast  filled  with  snow  that  had  com- 
menced falling.  . 

This  then  was  the  verdict  of  the  world — "  Starve  !  "  This 
was  the  only  prospect  it  offered — that  same  brave  world 
that  had  so  smilingly  beckoned  him  on  to  great  achieve- 
ments, and  unbounded  success,  but  a  few  days  ago — 
*'  Starve !  "  Every  blast  that  swept  around  the  corners 
howled  in  his  ears  "  Starve  !  "  Every  warmly  clad  passen- 
ger hurrying  unheedingly  by  seemed  to  say  by  their  indif- 
ference, 

"  Starve  !  who  cares  ?  there  is  no  place  for  you,  noth- 
ing for  you  to  do." 

The  hard,  stern  resolution  of  the  past  few  days,  not  to 
yield  an  inch,  to  persist  to  hew  his  way  through  every 
difficulty,  began  to  flag.  His  very  soul  seemed  crushed 
vithin  him.  Even  upon  the  threshold  of  his  life,  in  his 
strong,  joyous  youth,  the  world  had  become  to  him  what  i* 


A   GOOD   SAMARITAN.  49 

literally  was  that  night,  a  cold,  wintry,  stormy  place,  with 
a  black,  lowering  sky  and  hard  frozen  earth. 

His  father's  old  temptation  recurred  to  him  with  sud- 
den and  great  power.  "Perhaps  father  was  right,"  he 
mused.  "  God  was  against  him,  and  is  also  against  me, 
his  son.  Does  He  not  visit  the  iniquity  of  the  fathers 
upon  the  children  unto  the  third  and  fourth  generation  ? 
Not  but  that  He  will  save  us  at  last,  if  we  ask  Him,  but 
there  seems  some  great  wrong  that  must  be  severely  pun- 
ished here.  Or  else  if  God  does  not  care  much  about 
our  present  life,  thinking  only  of  the  hereafter,  there  must 
be  some  blind  fate  or  luck  that  crushes  some  and  lifts  up 
others," 

Thus  Dennis,  too  sad  and  morbid  to  take  a  just  view 
of  anything,  plodded  on  till  he  reached  his  boarding  place, 
and  stealing  in  as  if  he  had  no  business  to  be  there,  or 
anywhere  else,  sat  down  in  a  dusky  corner  behind  the 
stove,  and  was  soon  lost  to  surrounding  life,  in  his  own 
miserable  thoughts. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

A    GOOD    SAMARITAN. 

Dennis  was  too  good  a  Christian,  and  had  received 
too  deep  a  lesson  in  his  father's  case,  to  become  bitter, 
angry,  and  defiant,  even  if  he  had  believed  that  God  was 
against  him.  He  would  have  felt  that  it  was  simply  his 
duty  to  submit — to  endure  patiently.  Somehow,  until  to- 
day, his  heart  had  refused  to  believe  that  God  could  be 
against  any  of  His  creatures.  In  fact,  it  was  his  general 
impression  that  God  had  everything  to  do  with  his  being 


50 


BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 


a  good  Christian,  but  very  little  with  his  getting  a  good 
plac6.  The  defect  in  his  religion,  and  that  of  his  mother 
too,  was  to  a  ceitain  extent,  that  both  separated  the  spirit- 
ual life  of  the  soul  too  widely  from  present  life  with  its 
mater lalj  yet  essential  cares  and  needs.  At  this  point 
they,  like  multitudes  of  others,  fell  short  of  their  full  priv- 
ilege, and  enjoyment  of  God's  goodness.  His  mother  had 
cheered  and  sustained  her  hard  lot  by  hopes  and  visions 
of  the  better  life  beyond — by  anticipating  joys  to  come. 
She  had  never  fully  learned  how  God's  love,  like  the  sun- 
light, could  shine  upon  and  brighten  the  thorny,  rocky 
way,  and  cause  the  thorns  to  blossom,  and  delicate  fra- 
grant flowers  to  grow  in  the  crevices,  and  bloom  in  shaded 
nooks,  among  the  sharp  stones.  She  must  wait  for  her 
consolation.  She  must  look  out  of  her  darkness  to  the 
light  that  shone  through  the  portals  of  the  tomb,  forgetting 
that  God  caused  His  servants  to  sing  at  midnight,  in  the 
inner  prison,  the  deepest  dungeon,  though  scourged  and 
bleeding. 

Unconsciously  her  son  had  imbibed  the  same  ideas. 
Most  devoutly  he  asked  every  day  tcf  be  kept  from  sin, 
that  he  might  grow  in  the  Christian  life ;  but  he  did  not 
ask  or  expect,  save  in  a  vague,  general  way,  that  help 
which  a  wise,  good,  earthly  father  would  give  to  a  young, 
inexperienced  child,  struggling  with  the  hard,  practical  dif- 
ficulties of  this  world.  As  the  days  grew  darker  and  more 
full  of  disappointment,  he  had  asked  with  increasing  earn- 
estness that  he  might  be  kept  from  sin — from  falling  be- 
fore the  many  and  peculiar  temptations  that  assailed  him  ; 
and  we  have  seen  how  God  answered  his  prayer,  and  kept 
him  where  so  many  would  have  fallen.  But  God  meant 
to  show  him  that  His  goodness  extended  farther  than  he 
thought,  and  that  He  cared  for  His  children's  well-being 
now  as  truly  as  in  the  hereafter,  when  He  gathered  them 
home  into  His  immediate  presence.     But  Dennis  could 


A   GOOD   SAMARITAN. 


51 


not  see  this  now.  As  far  as  he  thought  at  all  on  the  sub- 
ject, he  had  the  vague  feeling  that  God  was  either  tiying 
his  faith  or  meting  out  some  righteous  judgment,  and  he 
must  do  the  best  he  could,  and  only  see  to  it  that  he  did 
not  sin  and  give  way  morally. 

Yet,  in  the  thick  night  of  his  earthly  prospects,  Den- 
nis still  loved  and  trusted  God.  He  reasoned  justly,  that 
if  at  last  brought  to  such  a  place  as  heaven,  no  matter 
what  he  suffered  here,  he  had  only  cause  for  unbounded 
gratitude.  And  he  felt  sure  that  a)l  would  be  right  in  the 
end,  but  now  feared  that  his  life  would  be  like  his  father's, 
a  tissue  of  disappointments,  and  that  he,  an  unsuccessful 
voyager,  storm-tossed  and  shipwrecked,  would  be  thrown 
upon  the  heavenly  shore  by  some  dark  crested  billow 
of  misfortune,  instead  of  sailing  into  port  with  flying 
colors. 

Thus  Dennis  sat  lost  in  gloomy  musings,  but  too  wea- 
ried in  mind  and  body  to  follow  any  line  of  thought  long. 
A  few  stern  facts  kept  looming  up  before  him,  like  rocks 
on  which  a  ship  is  drifting.  He  had  less  than  a  dollar  in 
his  pocket.  It  was  Friday  night.  If  he  did  not  get  any- 
thing to  do  Saturday,  how  was  he  ^oing  to  live  Sun- 
day and  the  days  that  followed  ?  Then  his  dependent 
mother  and  sister  rose  up  before  him.  They  seemed  to 
his  morbid  fancy  hungry  and  cold,  and  their  famine-pinch- 
ed faces  full  of  reproach.  His  head  bowed  lower,  and  he 
became  the  very  picture  of  dejection. 

He  was  startled  by  a  big,  hearty  voice  at  his  side,  ex- 
claiming— 

"  What  makes  yer  so  down  in  the  mouth  ?  Come  take 
a  drink,  and  cheer  up  !  " 

Raising  his  eyes,  he  saw  a  round,  red  face,  like  a  har- 
vest moon,  shining  full  upon  him.  It  was  somewhat  kindly 
in  its  expression,  in  keeping  with  the  words.  Rough  as 
was  the  courtesy,  it  went  straight  to  the  lonely,  discour- 


5» 


BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 


aged  heart  of  the  young  man,  and  with  moistened  eyes, 
he  said — 

"  I  thank  you  for  speaking  to  me  in  a  tone  that  has  a 
little  human  touch  in  it,  for  the  last  man  that  spoke  to  me 
left  an  echo  in  my  ear  that  I  would  gladly  get  out  of  it." 

"  Bad  luck  to  him,  then  !  Give  us  your  fore -foot ; 
there !  (with  a  grip  like  a  vise).  Bill  Cronk  never  went 
back  on  a  man  he  took  to.  I  tell  yer  what,  stranger,"  said 
he,  becoming  confidential,  "when  I  saw  yer  glowering  and 
blinking  here  in  the  corner  as  if  yer  was  listening  to  yer 
own  funeral  sermon,  I  be  ( )  if  I  could  take  a  com- 
fortable drink.  Come,  now,  take  a  good  swig  of  old  rye, 
and  see  how  things  will  mellow  up." 

Our  good  Samaritan  in  this  case  was  a  very  profane  and 
disreputable  one,  as  many  are  in  this  medley  world.  He 
had  a  great,  kindly  nature,  that  was  crawling  and  groveling 
in  all  sorts  of  low,  unseemly  places,  instead  of  growing 
straight  up  toward  heaven. 

"I  hope  you  will  think  me  none  the  less  friendly  if  I 
decline,"  said  Dennis.  "  I  would  drink  with  you  as  quick 
as  with  any  man  living,  but  it  is  a  thing  I  never  do,  except 
in  sickness." 

"O  yer  temperance,  are  yer  ?  well  I  don't  think  none 
the  wuss  of  yer  for  standing  by  yer  coWs.  Between  us,  it 
would  be  better  for  me  if  I  was  a  little  more  so.  Hang  it 
all !  I  take  a  drop  too  much,  now  and  then.  But  what  is 
a  fellow  to  do,  roughing  it  up  and  down  the  world  like  me  ?, 
1  should  often  get  lonely  and  mope  in  the  coiner  as  you 
did,  if  I  didn't  get  up  steam.  When  I  am  down  in  the 
mouth  I  take  a  drink  to  liven  me  up,  and  when  I  feel  good 
I  take  a  drink  to  make  me  feel  better;  when  I  would  not 
take  a  drink  on  my  own  hook,  I  meet  somebody  that  I 
oughi  to  drink  wilh.  It  is  astonishing  how  many  occasions 
there  are  to  drink,  specia  ly  when  a  man's  travelling,  like 
me." 


A   GOOD   SAMARITAN.  53 

"No  fear  but  what  the  devil  will  make  occasion 
enough,  '  said  Dennis. 

"  What  has  the  devil  got  to  do  with  it  ?"  asked  the  man 
gruffly. 

Just  then  the  miserable  wretch  entered  who,  appearing 
opportunely  in  Gamblin's  Hotel,  had  cured  Dennis  of  his 
desire  to  drink,  when  weary  and  despondent,  for  the  sake 
of  the  effects.  For  a  moment  they  looked  at  the  blear- 
eyed,  trembling  wreck  of  a  man,  and  then  Dennis  asked, 

"  Had  God  any  hand  in  making  that  man  what  he  is  ?  " 

"  I  should  say  not,"  said  Bill  Cronk  emphatically. 

"Well,  I  should  say  the  devil  had,"  said  Dennis;  "and 
there  behind  the  bar  are  the  means  used — the  best  tool  he 
has  got,  it  seems  to  me  ;  for  with  it  he  gets  hold  of  men 
with  some  heart  and  soul  in  them,  like  you.  " 

The  man  winced  under  the  words  that  both  conscience 
and  experience  told  him  were  true;  at  the  same  time  he 
was  propitiated  by  Dennis'  good  opinion  of  him.  He  gave 
a  big,  good-natured  laugh,  slapped  Dennis  on  the  shoulder, 
and  said : 

"  Wal,  stranger  p'raps  you're  right.  'Taint  every  tem- 
perance lecturer  though  that  has  an  awful  example  come 
in  just  at  the  right  time  so  slick.  But  you've  stood  by  yer 
color,  and  we  wont  quarrel.  Tell  us,  now,  if  it  aint  private, 
what  yer  so  chopfallen  about  ?  " 

Dennis  told  his  story,  as  grateful  for  this  rough  sym- 
pathy as  a  thirsty  traveller  would  be  in  finding  a  spring 
though  surrounded  by  thorns  and  rocks. 

The  round  jolly  face  actually  grew  long  and  serious 
through  interest  in  the  young  man's  tribulations. 

After  scratching  a  shaggy  but  practical  head  for  a  few 
moments,  Bill  in  the  vernacular  of  his  trade  spoke  as  fol- 
lows : 

"  Seems  to  me  the  case  is  just  this  :  here  you  are  a 
young  blooded  colt,  not  broken  to  either  saddle  or  thills— 
3* 


54  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY, 

here  you  are  whinnying  around  a  market  where  they  want 
nothing  but  dray  horses.  People  look  shy  at  you — usually 
do  at  a  strange  hoss.  Few  know  good  pints  when  they 
see  "em.  When  they  find  you  aint  broke  into  nolhin',  they 
want  you  to  work  for  nothin'.  I  see  how  you  can't  do 
txiis.  And  yet  fodder  is  runnin'  short,  and  you  must  do 
somethin'." 

Bill  having  dealt  in  live-stock  all  his  life,  naturally 
clothed  his  thoughts  in  language  drawn  from  familiar  ob- 
jects, and  Dennis,  miserable  as  he  was,  half  smiled  at  the 
close  parallel  run  between  him  and  a  young,  useless  colt ; 
but  he  only  said, 

"  I  don't  think  there  is  a  cart-horse  in  all  Chicago  that 
feels  more  broken  down  and  dispirited  than  I  do  to-night." 

"  'J'hat  may  all  be,  too,"  said  Bill,  "  but  you'd  feel  a  lit- 
tle oats  mighty  quick,  and  a  cart-hoss  wouldn't.  But  I 
know  the  pints,  whether  it  be  a  man  or  a  hoss — you'd  take 
kindly  to  work  of  the  right  sort,  and  it  would  pay  any  one 
to  take  you  at  your  own  terms,  but  you  can't  make  'em 
see  it.  If  I  was  in  a  situation  to  take  you,  I'd  do  it  in  a 
minute.  Hang  it  all.  I  can't  do  much  for  you,  either.  I 
took  a  drop  too  much  in  Cleveland  t'other  night,  and  some 
of  the  folks  in  the  house  looked  over  my  pocket-book  and 
left  me  just  enough  to  get  home  with." 

Dennis  shook  his  head  reproachfully  and  was  about  to 
speak — 

"  1  know  what  you're  going  to  say,"  said  Bill,  heading 
off  another  temperance  lecture.  "  I'll  take  a  drink  by  and 
bye,  and  think  over  what  you've  said,  for  I  can't  think 
much  until  I  get  a  little  steam  up.  But  now  ^'e  must  try 
anrl  see  some  way  out  of  the  fog  for  you."  And  again  in 
absence  of  the  wonted  steam  he  scratched  the  shaggy 
head  vigorously. 

"  Seems  to  me  the  best  thing  for  you  is  to  do  as  I  did 
when  I  first  broke  the  home  pasture  and  started  out  on  a 


A   GOOD   SAMARITAN.  55 

rampage.  I  just  grabbed  the  fust  job  that  came  along, 
good,  bad  or  indifferent — always  kept  doing  something. 
You  can  look  for  a  bird  in  a  bush  quite  as  well  when 
you've  got  one  in  the  hand  as  when  you  haint.  To  be  sure 
I  wasn't  as  squeamish  as  you  are.  Td  jumped  at  the  offer 
you  had  this  afternoon ;  but  I  reckon  I'd  taken  toll  too 
often  to  be  very  profitable.  But  in  this  way  I  always  kept 
agoin' — never  got  down  underfoot  so  the  stronger  ones 
could  tread  on  me.  When  it  comes  to  that,  I  want  to  die. 
Now  if  you've  got  plenty  of  clear  grit — little  disposed  to 
show  tlie  white  feather  though,  to-night,  aint  yer  ?  " 

Dennis  flushed  up,  and  was  about  to  speak  almost 
angrily. 

"  There  !  there  !  "  said  his  new  friend.  "  I  said  yer 
wasn't  a  cart-hoss,  one  touch  of  the  spur  and  up  goes  tail 
and  ears,  and  then  look  out.  Are  yer  ashamed  to  do  any 
kind  of  honest  work  ?  I  mean  kinder  pious  work  that 
hasn't  any  smack  of  the  devil  you're  so  afraid  of,  in  it  ? " 

"  No  !  work  is  just  what  I  want." 

"  Would  you  black  boots,  now  ?  " 

Dennis  winced,  thought  a  momentf  and  then  with  a 
manly  flush  said — 

"  Yes,  before  I  would  take  a  cent  of  charity  from  any 
living  soul." 

"  Give  us  yer  fore-foot  again ;  you're  tjie  kind  of  crit- 
ter I  like  to  invest  in — for  you'd  improve  on  a  feller's 
hands.  No  fear  about  you;  the  only  thing  is  to  get  you 
in  harness  before  a  load  that  will  pay  to  haul." 

Suddenly  he  got  up,  strode  to  the  bar-room  door,  look- 
ed out  into  the  night,  and  came  back  again. 

"  I  think  I  know  of  a  way  in  which  you  can  make  two 
or  three  dollars  to-morrow." 

"  How  ?  "  exclaimed  Dennis,  his  whole  face  lighting  up 
with  hope. 

"  Go  to  a  hardware  store,  invest  in  a  big  wooden  sr.ow« 


56  BARRIERS   13URNEU   AWAY. 

shovel,  and  clean  off  sidewalks  before  stores.  You  can 
pick  up  a  good  many  quarters  before  night,  like  enough." 

"  I  will  do  it,"  said  Dennis,  heartily,  "  and  thank  you 
warmly  for  the  suggestion,  and  for  your  kindly  interest 
generally,"  and  he  looked  up  and  felt  himself  another  man. 

"  Gosh !  but  it  takes  mighty  few  oats  to  set  you  up ! 
But  come,  and  let  us  have  a  little  plain,  substantial  fodder. 
I  will  drink  nothing  but  coffee,  to-night,  out  of  compUment 
to  you." 

"  Cheered,  comforted,  and  hopeful,  Dennis  sat  down 
with  his  good  Samaritan,  and  made  a  hearty  supper,  after 
which  they  parted  with  a  strong,  friendly  grip,  and  sincere 
good  wishes,  Cronk,  the  drover,  going  on  farther  west, 
and  Dennis  to  the  rest  he  so  sorely  needed. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

•        YAHCOB    BUNK. 

Before  retiring  Dennis  as  usual  took  his  Bible  from 
his  trunk  to  read  a  chapter.  He  was  now  in  a  very  differ- 
ent mood  from  that  of  a  few  hours  ago.  The  suggestion 
of  his  bar-room  acquaintance  was  a  light  upon  his  way. 
And  with  one  of  Dennis's  age  and  temperament,  even  a 
small  hope  is  potent.  He  was  eager  for  the  coming  day  in 
order  to  try  the  experiment  of  wringing  bread  and  oppor- 
tunity for  further  search  out  of  the  wintry  snows. 

But  that  which  had  done  him  the  most  good — ^more 
than  he  realized — was  the  kindness  he  had  received,  rough 
though  it  was ;  the  sympathy  and  companionship  of  an- 
other human  being, — for  if  he  had  been  cast  away  on  a 
desert  island  he  could  not  have  been  more  isolated  than 
in  the  great  city,  with  its  indifferent  multitudes. 


YAHCOB  BUNK. 


57 


Moreover  the  generous  supper  was  not  without  its  de- 
cided influence  ;  and  with  it  he  had  drank  a  cup  of  good 
coffee,  that  nectar  of  the  gods  whose  subtile,  deUcate  in- 
fluence is  felt  in  body  and  brain,  in  every  fibre  of  the  na- 
ture not  deadened  and  blunted  by  stronger  and  coarser 
stimulants.  He  who  leaves  out  physical  causes  in  ac- 
counting for  mental  and  moral  states,  will  usually  come 
wide  of  the  mark. 

But  while  giving  the  influences  above  referred  to  their 
due  force,  so  far  from  ignoring,  we  would  acknowledge 
with  emphasis  the  chief  cause  of  man's  ability  to  receive 
and  appreciate  all  the  highest  phases  of  truth  and  good, 
namely,  God's  help  asked  for  and  given.  Prayer  was  a 
habit  with  Dennis.  He  asked  God  with  childlike  faith  for 
the  bestowment  of  every  Christian  grace,  and  those  who 
knew  him  best  saw  that  he  had  no  reason  to  complain  that 
his  prayers  were  unanswered. 

But  now  at  a  time  when  he  would  most  appreciate  it, 
God  was  about  to  reveal  to  him  a  truth  that  would  be  a  rich 
source  of  help  and  comfort  through  life,  and  a  sudden 
burst  of  sunshine  upon  his  dark  way  at  the  present  hour. 
He  was  to  be  shown  how  he  might  look  to  heaven  for  help 
and  guidance  in  respect  to  his  present  and  earthly  in- 
terests, as  truly  as  in  his  spiritual  life. 

As  he  opened  his  Bible  his  eyes  caught  the  words  of 
our  Lord,  "  Launch  out  into  the  deep  and  let  down  your 
nets  for  a  draught." 

Then  Peter's  answer — "  Master,  we  have  toiled  all  the 
night  and  have  taken  nothing:  nevertheless,  at  Thy  word 
I  will  let  down  the  net." 

The  result  — "  They  inclosed  a  great  multitude  of 
fishes." 

With  these  words  light  broke  in  upon  his  mind.  "  If 
ouf  Lord,"  he  mused,  "helped  His  first  disciples  catch 
fish,  why  should  He  not  help  me  to  find  a  good  place  ?  " 


X 


58  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

Then  unbelief  suggested — "  It  was  not  for  the  sake  of  the 
fish  ;  they  were  only  means  to  a  higher  end." 

But  Dennis,  who  had  plenty  of  good  common  sense,  at 
once  answered  this  objection — "  Neither  do  I  want  position 
and  money  for  low  selfish  purposes.  My  ends  are  the 
best  and  purest,  for  I  am  seeking  my  own  honest  living  and 
the  support  of  my  mother  and  sisters — the  very  imperative 
duties  that  God  is  now  imposing  on  me.  Would  God  re- 
veal a  duty  and  no  way  of  performing  it  ?  " 

Then  came  the  thought — "  Have  I  asked  Him  to  help 
me  ?  Have  I  not  been  seeking  in  my  own  wisdom,  and 
trusting  in  my  own  strength  ?  And  this  too  when  my  igno- 
rance of  business,  the  dull  season  of  the  year,  and  every 
thing  was  against  me,  when  I  specially  needed  help.  Lit- 
tle wonder  that  I  have  fared  as  I  have." 

Turning  the  leaves  of  his  Bible  rapidly  he  began 
searching  for  instances  of  God's  interference  in  behalf  of 
the  temporal  interests  of  His  servants — for  passages  where 
earthly  prosperity  was  promised  or  given.  After  an  hour 
he  closed  the  Bible  with  a  long  breath  of  wonder,  and 
said  to  himself, 

*'  Why,  God  seems  to  care  as  much  for  the  well-being 
and  happiness  of  His  children  here,  as  He  will  when-  He 
gets  us  all  about  Him  in  the  blessed  home  above.  I've 
been  blind  for  twenty-one  years  to  one  of  the  grandest 
truths  of  this  Book." 

Then  as  the  thought  grew  upon  him,  he  exclaimed  joy- 
ously, "  Take  heart,  Dennis  Fleet ;  God  is  on  your  side  in 
the  struggle  for  an  honest  success  in  this  life,  as  truly  as 
in  your  fight  against  sin  and  the  devil." 

It  was  long  before  he  slept  that  night,  but  a  truth  had 
been  revealed  that  rested  and  strengthened  him  more  than 
the  heavy  slumbers  after  the  weary  days  that  had  preceded. 

The  dawn  of  the  Winter  morning  was  cold  and  faint, 


YAHCOB  BUNK. 


59 


when  Dennis  appeared  in  the  bar-room  the  next  day. 
The  jolly- faced  Teuton  "»/as  making  the  fire,  stopping  often 
to  blow  hi?  cold  fingers,  and  wasting  enough  good  breath 
to  have  kindled  a  furnace.  '  His  rubicund  visage,  sur- 
roimded  by  shaggy  hair  and  beard  of  yellow,  here  appear- 
ed in  the  dust  and  smoke  he  was  making  like  the  sun 
rising  in  a  fog. 

"  Hillo  !  "  he  said  on  seeing  Dennis;  "  vat  you  up  dis 
early  for  ?  Don't  vant  anoder  dinner  yet,  I  hope  ?  " 

"  I  will  take  that  in  good  time,"  said  Dennis ;  "  and 
will  want  a  bigger  one  than  that  which  so  astonished  you 
at  first." 

"  O  my  eyes  !  "  said  the  German ;  "  den  I  go  and  tell 
de  cook  to  begin  to  get  him  right  avay." 

Laughing  good-naturedly  Dennis  went  to  the  door  and 
looked  out.  On  side-walk  and  street  the  snow  lay  six  or 
eight  inches  deep,  untrodden,  white  and  spotless,  even  in 
the  heart  of  the  great  city.  "  How  differently  this  snow  will 
look  by  night,"  thought  he  ;  "  how  soiled  and  black.  Per- 
haps very  many  come  to  this  city  in  the  morning  of  life 
like  this  snow,. pure  and  unstained ;  but  after  being  here 
awhile  they  become  like  this  snow  when  it  has  been  tossed 
about  and  trodden  under  every  careless  foot.  God  grant 
that  however  poor  and  unsuf cessful  I  may  remain,  such 
pollution  may  never  be  my  fate." 

But  feeling  that  he  had  no  time  for  moralizing  if  he 
would  secure  bread  for  the  coming  day  of  rest,  he  turned 
and  said  to  the  factotum  of  the  bar-room — 

"  How  much  will  you  give  to  have  the  snow  cleared  off 
the  side-walk  in  front  of  your  house  ?  " 

"  Zwei  shillen." 

"  Then  I  will  earn  my  breakfast  before  I  eat  it,  if  you 
will  lend  me  a  shovel." 

"  I  taut  you  vas  a  shentlemans,"  said  the  German  star- 
ing at  him. 


6o  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAV. 

"  So  I  am  ;  just  the  shentlemans  that  will  clean  off  your 
sidewalk  for  '  zwei  shillen,'  if  you  will  let  him." 

"  You  vant  to  do  him  for  exercise  ?  " 

"  No  !  for  zwei  shillings." 

"  I  taut  you  vas  a  shentlemans,"  said  the  man,  still 
staring  in  stolid  wonder  at  Dennis. 

"  Didn't  you  ever  know  of  a  gentleman  who  came  from 
Germany  to  this  country  and  was  glad  to  do  anything  for 
an  honest  living  ?  " 

"  Often  and  often  I  haf.  You  see  von  here,"  said  the 
man  with  a  grin. 

"  Well,  I  am  just  that  kind  of  a  gentleman.  Now  if 
you  will  lend  me  a  shovel  I  will  clean  off  your  side-walk 
for  two  shillings,  and  be  a  great  deal  more  thankful  than 
if  you  had  given  me  the  money  for  nothing." 

"  Little  fear  of  dat,"  said  the  man  with  another  grin. 
"  Vel  you  are  de  queerest  Yankee  in  Chicago,  you  are ;  I 
tink  you  are  'bout  haf  sherman.  I  tejl  you  vat  —  here, 
vat's  your  name  ? — if  you  clean  off  dat  side-walk  goot,  you 
shall  haf  breakfast  and  dinner,  much  as  you  eat,  vidout 
von  cent  to  pay.  I  don't  care  if  de  cook  is  cooking  all 
day.     I  like  your  vat  you  call  him — spunk." 

"  It's  a  bargain,"  said  Dennis,  "  and  if  I  can  make  a 
few  more  like  it  to-day,  I  shall  be  rich." 

"  You  may  vel  say  dat.  I  will  go  into  de  market  and 
see  if  dare  be  enough  for  me  to  keep  my  part  of  de  bar- 
gain goot." 

For  half  an  hour  Dennis  worked  away  lustily,  and  then 
called  his  task-master  and  said, 

"  Will  you  accept  the  job  ?  " 

Surveying  with  surprise  the  large  space  cleared,  and 
looking  in  vain  for  reason  to  find  fault,  he  said, 

"  I  kin  say  nothin'  agin  him.  I  hope  you  will  eat  your 
dinner  as  quick.     Now  come  into  your  breakfast." 

He  pretended  to  be  perfectly  aghast  at  Dennis's  on- 


YAHCOB  BUNK.  6l 

slaught  on  the  buckwheat  cakes,  and  rolled  up  his  eyes  de- 
spairingly as  each  new  plate  was  emptied. 

Having  finished,  Dennis  tipped  him  a  wink,  and  said, 

"  V/ait  till  dinner  time." 

"  Ah !  dare  vill  be  von  famine,"  said  the  German  in  a 
tone  of  anguish,  wringing  his  hands. 

Having  procured  the  needful  implement,  Dennis  start- 
ed out,  and  though  there  was  considerable  competition, 
found  plenty  to  do,  and  shovelled  away  with  little  cessa- 
tion till  one  o'clock.  Then  counting  his  gains,  found  that 
he  had  paid  for  his  shovel,  secured  breakfast  and  dinner, 
and  had  a  balance  on  hand  of  $2.50,  and  he  had  nearly 
half  a  day  yet  before  him.  He  felt  rich — nay  more  than 
that,  he  felt  like  a  man  who,  sinking  in  a  shoreless  ocean, 
suddenly  catches  a  plank  that  bears  him  up,  while  shore 
appears  in  the  distance. 

"  This  is  what  comes  from  asking  God  to  help  a  fellow," 
said  he  to  himself  "  Strange,  too,  that  He  should  answer 
my  prayer  in  part  before  I  asked,  by  causing  that  queer 
jumble  of  good  and  evil.  Bill  Cronk,  to  suggest  to  me  this 
way  of  turning  an  honest  penny.  I  wish  Bill  was  as  good 
a  friend  to  himself  as  he  is  to  others.  I  fear  that  he  will 
go  to  the  dogs.  Bless  me  !  the  gnawings  of  hunger  are 
bad  enough,  but  what  must  be  those  of  conscience  ?  I  think 
I  can  astonish  my  German  friend  to-day  as  never  before," 
and  shouldering  his  shovel  he  walked  back  to  dinner,  feel- 
ing like  a  prince  bearing  aloft  the  insigniaof  his  power. 

When  he  entered  the  bar  and  lunch-room,  he  saw  that 
something  was  wrong.  The  landlord  met  him  instead  of 
his  jolly,  satirical  friend. 

Now  the  owner  of  the  place  was  a  wizen-faced,  dried- 
up  old  anatomy,  who  seemed  utterly  exhaling  away  in  to- 
bacco smoke,  while  his  assistant  was  becoming  spherical 
generally  under  the  expansive  power  of  lager.  It  was  his 
custom  to  sit  up  and  smoke  most  of  the  night,  and  there- 


62  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

fore  get  down  late  in  the  morning.  When  he  appeared, 
his  assistant  told  him  of  the  bargain  he  had  made  with 
Dennis,  as  a  good  joke.  But  old  Hans  hadn't  any  faculty 
for  jokes.  Dollars  and  cents  and  his  big  meerschaum 
made  up  the  two  elements  of  his  life.  The  thought  of 
losing  zwei  shilings  or  zwei  cents  by  Dennis,  or  any  one 
else,  caused  him  anguish,  and  instead  of  laughing,  his  fun- 
loving  assistant  was  aghast  at  seeing  him  fall  into  a  passion. 

"  You  be  von  big  fule.  Vat  for  we  keep  mens  here 
who  haf  no  money .''  You  should  cleared  him  off,  instead 
of  making  bargains  for  him  to  eat  us  out  of  de  house." 

"  We  haf  his  trunk,"  said  Jacob,  for  that  was  his  name. 

"  Nothin'  in  it,"  growled  Hans,  and  yet  somewhat  mol- 
lified by  this  fact. 

When  Dennis  appeared,  he  put  the  case  without  any 
circumlocution — 

"I  make  my  livin'  by  keepin'  dis  house.  I  can  no 
make  my  livin'  unless  everybodies  pay  me.  I  haf  reason 
to  tink  dat  you  haf  no  money.  Vat  ish  the  truf .'  Cause 
if  you  haf  none,  you  can  no  longer  stay  here." 

"  Have  I  not  paid  for  everything  I  have  had  so  far  ?  " 
said  Dennis. 

"  Dat  ish  not  de  question  ?  Haf  you  got  any  moneys  ?" 

"  What  is  your  bill  in  advance  up  to  Monday  morning  ? " 

"  Zwie  dollar  and  a  quarter  if  yoU  take  breakfast." 

"  Deduct  breakfast  and  dinner  to-day  for  clearing  off 
the  sidewalk." 

"  Dat  ish  too  much  ;  you  did  it  in  half  hour." 

"  Well,  it  would  have  taken  you  three.  But  a  bargain 
is  a  bargain,  the  world  over.  Did  not  you  promise  it  ? " — ■ 
to  Jacob. 

"  Yah  !  and  you  shall  haf  him,  too,  if  I  be  de  loser. 
Yahcob  Bunk  is  not  the  man  to  go  back  on  his  wort." 

"  Vel  den,"  said  old  Hans,  "  von  dollar  seventy-five  to 
Monday  morning." 


YAHCOB   BUNK.     -  6$ 

**  There  is  the  money ;  now  let  me  have  my  dinner,  for 
I  am  in  a  hurry." 

At  the  sight  of  money  Hans  at  once  became  the  most 
obsequious  of  hosts,  and  so  would  remain  while  it  lasted. 
But  Dennis  saw  that  his  purchased  courtesy  would  change 
the  moment  it  was  gone,  and  he  trembled  at  his  narrow 
escape  from  being  thrust  out  into  the  Wintry  streets,  friend- 
less, penniless,  to  beg  or  starve — equally  hard  alternatives 
to  his  mind. 

"  Come  Yahcob,  thou  snail,  give  the  shentlemans  his 
dinner,"  said  Hans. 

Jacob,  who  had  been  looking,  on  with  hea\7^,  stolid 
face,  now  brightened  up  on  seeing  that  all  was  right,  and 
gave  Dennis  a  double  portion  of  the  steaming  pot-pie,  and 
a  huge  mug  of  coffee.  When  Dennis  had  finished  these 
and  crowned  his  repast  with  a  big  dumpling,  Jacob  came  to 
him  with  a  face  as  long  and  serious  as  his  harvest  moon  of 
a  visage  could  be  made,  and  said — 

"  Dare  is  nothing  more  in  Chicago,  you  haf  cleaned  it 
out.  We  must  vait  till  de  evenin'  train  comes  before  we 
haf  supper." 

"  That  will  be  time  enough  for  me,"  said  Dennis,  laugh- 
ing, for  he  could  laugh  to-day  at  little  things, — and  started 
off  again  with  his  shovel. 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY 


CHAPTER  IX. 

LAND     AT     LAST. 

During  the  latter  part  of  a  busy  alternoon,  Dennis 
came  to  a  spacious,  elegant  store  before  which  the  snow  lay 
untouched  save  as  trodden  by  passers-by.  Over  the  high 
arched  door-way  were  the  words  in  gilt  letters  "  Art  build- 
ing," and  as  far  as  a  mere  warehouse  for  beautiful  things 
could  deserve  this  title,  this  place  did,  for  it  was  crowded 
with  engravings,  chromos,  paintings,  bronzes,  statuary,  and 
every  variety  of  ornament.  With  delighted  eyes  and  lin- 
gering steps  he  had  passed  slowly  through  this  store  a  few 
days  previous  in  his  search,  but  had  received  the  usual  cool 
negative.  He  had  gone  reluctantly  out  into  the  cold  street 
again  as  Adam  might  have  gone  out  of  Paradise. 

A  large  florid  looking  man  with  a  light  curling  mus- 
tache, now  stood  in  the  door-way.  His  appearance  was 
unmistakably  that  of  a  German  of  the  highest  and  most 
cultivated  type.  And  yet  when  he  spoke,  his  English  was 
so  good  that  you  only  detected  a  foreign  accent. 

Strong  vexation  was  stamped  upon  his  face  as  he  look- 
ed at  the  snowy,  untidy  sidewalk. 

"Mr.  Schwartz,"  he  asked  of  one  of  his  clerks,  "was 
Pat  here  this  morning  ?  " 

"  Yes  sir." 

"  Was  he  perfectly  straight  ?  " 

"I  cannot  say  that  he  was,  sir." 

"  He  is  off  on  a  spree  again.  Send  him  to  me  the  mo- 
3ient  he  returns." 


LAND   AT  LAST.  65 

"  Shall  I  clear  your  sidewalk  ? "  said  Dennis,  stepping 
up  and  touching  his  hat  respectfully. 

"  Yes,"  said  the  gentleman  scarcely  looking  at  him, 
"  and  when  through  come  to  the  office  for  your  money,'' 
and  then  he  walked  back  into  the  store  with  a  frowning 
brow. 

Though  Dennis  was  now  pretty  thoroughly  fatigued 
with  the  hard  day's  work,  he  entered  on  this  task  with  a 
good  will  as  the  closing  labor  of  the  day,  hoping  from  the 
wide  space  to  be  cleared  to  receive  proportionate  recom- 
pense. And  yet  his  despatch  was  not  so  great  as  usual,  for 
in  spite  of  himself  his  eyes  were  continually  wandering 
to  the  large  show  windows,  from  which  smiled  down  upon 
him  Summer  landscapes,  lovely  faces  that  seemed  all  the 
more  beautiful  in  contrast  with  the  bleak  and  darkening 
street. 

He  was  rudely  startled  from  one  of  the  stolen  glances 
at  a  sweet,  girlish  face  that  seemed  peering  archly  at  him 
from  a  corner,  by  the  loud  tones  and  strong  brogue  of 
"  Pat "  returning  thus  late  to  his  neglected  duties. 

"  Bad  luck  to  yez  !  what  yez  doin'  here  ?  " 

"  Clearing. the  sidewalk,"  said  Dennis,  laconically. 

"  Give  me  that  shovel,  or  I'll  knock  bloody  blazes  out 
of  yez." 

Dennis  at  once  stood  on  the  defensive,  and  raised  his 
tool  threateningly.  At  the  same  time  seeing  a  policeman, 
he  called  out — 

"  Will  you  please  cause  this  drunken  fellow  to  move 
on?" 

The  officer  was  about  to  comply,  when  the  Irishman 
with  a  snort  like  that  of  a  mad  bull,  rushed  to  the  door  of 
the  out-building,  wrenched  it  open,  and  leaving  it  so,  tore 
down  the  long  store,  crying 

'*  Misther  Ludolph  !  Misther  Ludolph !  here's  a  bloody 
spalpane  a  doin'  my  work." 


66  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

He  had  scarcely  got  half  way  to  the  office  before  there 
was  a  crash  and  a  general  commotion. 

Pat,  in  his  blind  rage,  and  steps  uncertain  from  the  ef- 
fects of  whiskey,  had  struck  a  valuable  marble,  and  it^lay 
broken  on  the  floor.  This  catastrophe  sobered  him,  and 
he  stood  looking  at  the  destruction  he  had  wrought  in 
dismay.  His  employer,  the  gentleman  whom  Dennis  had 
seen  at  the  door,  now  appeared  upon  the  scene  in  a  tow- 
ering passion,  and  scrupled  not  to  heap  maledictions  upon 
the  head  of  the  unfortunate  Hibernian. 

"  What  do  you  mean  by  rushing  through  the  store  in 
this  mad  style  ?  "  he  demanded. 

"  There's  an  impudent  fellow  outside  a  doin'  my  work," 
said  Pat. 

"  Why  didn't  you  do  it  yourself,  instead  of  going  off 
to  the  gin-mills  this  morning  .''  Didn't  I  warn  you  .-'  Didn't 
I  tell  you  your  last  spree  should  be  the  last  in  my  employ .' 
Now,  begone !  you  drunken  idiot,  and  if  you  ever  show 
your  face  on  these  premises  again,  I'll  have  you  arrested 
and  compel  payment  for  this  marble,  and  it  will  take  every 
cent  you  have  got  in  the  world,  and  more  too." 

"  Ah !  Misther  Ludolph,  if  you'll  only  give  me  one 
more — " 

"I  tell  you  be  off!  or  I  will  call  the  policeman  at 
once." 

"  But  Bridget  and  the  childer  will  starve." 

"  What's  Bridget  and  the  children  to  me  ?  If  you 
wont  take  care  of  them,  you  can't  expect  other  people  to. 
Begone  !  "  said  his  employer,  advancing  threateningly  and 
stamping  his  foot. 

Pat  looked  around  in  vain  for  help — the  clerks  were 
but  fainter  echoes  of  their  master. 

Seeing  his  case  to  be  hopeless,  he  turned  about  and 
hurried  away,  his  big  red  face  distorted  by  many  contend- 
ing emotions.     Nor  did  he  stop  until  he  reached  one  of 


LAND   AT  LAST.  6y. 

the  fatal  "  gin-mills,"  and  soon  drowned  nr/emory  and  trou- 
ble ir  huge  potations  of  the  fiery  element  that  was  de- 
^stroying  him,  and  bringing  wretchedness  to  "  Bridget  and 
the  childer." 

Again  Dennis  had  a  lesson  on  drinking  for  the  effects. 

He  rapidly  completed  his  work  and  entered  the  store. 
A  clerk  handed  him  fifty  cents. 

"  May  I  see  Mr.  Ludolph  a  moment  ? "  he  asked,  for 
he  had  learned  that  this  was  the  proprietor's  name  from 
the  scene  he  had  witnessed  through  the  open  door. 

"  Yes,"  replied  the  clerk,  "  he  is  in  the  office  there  ;  but 
I  guess  you  won't  find  him  very  smooth  this  evening," 
looking  at  the  same  time  suggestively  toward,  the  broken 
marble. 

But  Mr.  Ludolph  was  not  in  as  bad  a  humor  as  was 
imagined.  This  thrifty  Teuton  had  not  lost  much  by  the 
mishap  of  the  afternoon,  for  a  month  or  two  of  wages  was 
due  Pat,  and  this  kept  back  would  pay  in  the  main  for  the 
injury  he  had  done.  His  whole  soul  being  bent  on  the  ac- 
quirement of  money,  for  reasons  that  will  be  explained 
further  on,  his  momentary  passion  soon  passed  away  when 
he  found  he  had  sustained  no  material  injury.  To  Den- 
nis's knock  he  responded  in  his  usual  tone. 

"  Come  in  !  "  and  Dennis  stood  in  a  warm,  lighted,  cozy 
office,  where  the  object  of  his  quest  sat  writing  rapidly, 
with  his  back  to  the  door.  Dennis  waited  respectfully  till 
the  facile  pen  glided  through  the  sentence,  and  then  Mr. 
Ludolph  looked  up.  Dennis's  bearing  and  appearance 
was  so  unmistakably  that  of  a  gentleman,  that  Mr.  Lu- 
dolph, not  recognizing  him  as  the  person  who  had  cleared 
his  sidewalk,  rose  courteously  and  said : 

"  Did  you  wish  to  see  me  ?  " 

"  Yes  sir,"  replied  Dennis,  "  I  understand  that  you  dis- 
missed a  person  in  your  employ  this  afternoon.  I  would 
respectfully  apply  for  his  place,  .£  it  is  not  promised." 


68  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

The  gentleman  smiled  and  said — 

"  You  are  mistaken,  I  think.  '  I  discharged  a  drunken 
Irishman,  who  had  been  porter  and  man-of-all-\vork  about 
the  store,  this  afternoon ;  but  I  have  no  place  vacant, 
young  sir,  that  you  would  care  to  fill." 

"  If  you  think  me  competent  to  fill  the  position  of  pot- 
ter and  your  man-of-all-work,  I  would  be  very  glad  to  ob- 
tain it,  that  is  if  it  will  support  me  and  those  dependent 
on  me." 

The  merchant  muttered  to  himself,  "  I  thought  he  was 
a  gentleman." 

Then,  as  this  was  a  business  matter  of  some  import- 
ance, he  caused  Dennis  to  stand  full  in  the  light,  while  he 
withdrew  somewhat  in  the  shadow,  and  gave  it  his  atten- 
tion with  characteristic  shrewdness  and  caution. 

"  You  seem  rather  above  the  situation  you  ask  for,"  he 
said. 

"  I  am  not  above  it  in  circumstances,"  said  Dennis, 
and  it  certainly  is  better  than  shoveling  snow  all  day." 

"Are  you  the  man  that  just  cleaned  my  sidewalk  ? " 

"I  am,  sir." 

"  You  must  be  aware  that  your  general  appearance  is 
very  different  from  that  of  the  man  discharged  to-day,  and 
from  those  seeking  the  menial  place  in  question.  Can 
you  explain  this  fact  satisfactorily?" 

"I  can  readily  explain  it,  and  I  hope  satisfactorily. 
At  any  rate  I  shall  be  perfectly  open."  And  Dennis  told 
him  briefly,  but  plainly,  just  how  he  was  situated. 

As  the  keen  man  of  the  world  watched  with  the  closest 
scrutiny  the  honest  young  face,  he  believed  every  word. 
Accustomed  to  deal  with  all  classes  of  men  from  child- 
hood, he  had  learned  to  read  them  as  the  open  page  of  a 
book. 

He  asked  coolly,  however,  "  Have  you  no  recommen- 
dations ? 


LAND   AT   LAST.  6g 

Dennis  produced  the  ministerial  letter,  which  Mr.  Lu- 
dolph  glanced  at  with  good-natured  contempt. 

"  This  is  all  right,"  he  said ;  "  superstition  is  an  excel- 
lent thing  for  some  minds.  I  managed  Pat  a  year  through 
his  priest,  and  then  he  got  beyond  the  priest  and  me 
too." 

This  undisguised  contempt  of  all  that  he  held  sacred, 
and  the  classing  of  true  faith  with  gross  superstition, 
pained  Dennis ;  and  his  face  showed  it,  though  he  said 
nothing. 

"  There,"  said  the  gentleman,  "  I  did  not  mean  to  hurt 
your  feelings,  but  to  the  educated  in  our  land,  these 
things  seem  very  childish." 

"I  would  serve  you  none  the  worse,"  said  Dennis  with 
quiet  dignity, "  if  I  believed  that  the  duty  I  owed  to  you  I 
owed  also  to  God." 

Mr.  Ludolph  looked  as  if  a  new  idea  had  struck  him, 
smiled,  and  said — 

"Most  people's  religion,  as  far  as  my  experience  has 
gone,  is  not  of  this  practical  kind.  But  I  believe  that  I 
can  trust  you,  and  your  face  and  story  are  worth  much 
more  to  me  than  this  letter.  A  scamp  might  possess  that 
as  well  as  an  honest  youth  like  you.  Now,  as  to  terms — 
I  will  give  you  forty  dollars  a  month  for  the  first  two 
months,  and  then,  if  you  develop  and  take  well  to  the 
work,  I  will  give  you  sixty." 

Dennis  thought  that  this,  with  close  economy,  would 
enable  him  to  live  and  support  his  mother  and  sisters,  and 
he  accepted  the  terms. 

"  Moreover,  to  show  the  advantage  of  telling  a  straight- 
forward stor^,  you  may  sleep  in  the  store — the  building 
will  be  safer  for  having  some  one  it.  I  will  pay  you  at 
the  end  of  every  week  as  long  as  you  suit,  so  that  you  can 
commence  sending  something  to  your  mother  immedi- 
ately. You  see  that  I  take  an  interest  in  you,"  said  the 
4 


70 


BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 


shrewd  man,  'and  expect  you  to  take  an  irterest  in  my 
business,  and  work  for  me  as  for  yourself." 

Simple,  honest  Dennis  could  not  see  that  Mr.  Ludolph 
cared  infinitely  more  for  himself  than  all  the  world  rora- 
binod,  and  made  it  his  life-study  to  get  the  most  out  of  it 
with  the  least  cost  to  himself.  Under  the  words  that  seemed 
so  kind  and  considerate  Dennis's  heart  swelled  with  the 
strong  and  grateful  purpose  to  spare  himself  in  no  way  in 
the  service  of  such  an  employer.  The  wily  man  saw  this, 
and  smiled  to  himself  over  the  credulity  of  mankind. 

"  Have  you  enough  to  last  till  next  Saturday  night  ? " 
he  asked. 

"  I  will  make  it  last,"  said  Dennis,  sturdily. 

"  That  is  right,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph,  "  stand  on  your  own 
feet  if  you  can.  I  never  give  any  more  help  than  will 
barely  enable  a  man  to  keep  himself,"  a  maxim  which  not 
only  had  the  advantage  of  being  sound,  but  of  according 
exactly  with  his  disposition. 

After  a  moment's  thought,  Mr.  Ludolph  spoke  in  a  tone 
so  sharp,  and  manner  so  stern,  that  Dennis  was  startled: 

"  Mark  me,  young  man,  I  wish  a  plain  understanding 
in  one  respect — you  take  Pat's  place,  and  I  expect  you  to 
do  Pat's  work.  I  wish  no  trouble  to  arise  from  your  being 
above  your  business." 

"  You  will  have  none,"  said  Dennis,  quietly  and  firmly. 

"All  right,  then.  Mr.  Schwartz  will  show  you  about 
closing  up  the  store.  Be  here  early  Monday  morning,  and 
remember  that  all  depends  upon  yourself." 

In  the  depths  of  his  grateful  heart  Dennis  felt  how 
much  the  success  of  that  day  and  every  day  of  Ufe  de- 
pended on  God.  • 

Mr.  Ludolph  put  on  his  coat  and  gloves  and  went  out 
with  Dennis  into  the  store. 

"  Gentlemen,  '  said  he  to  his  clerks,  "  this  young  man, 
Dennis  Fleet  bv  name,  will  take  the  place  of  Pat  Murphy, 


THE  NEW  BROOM. 


7* 


discharged  to-day.  Mr,  Schwartz,  will  you  show  him  what 
it  is  necessary  to  do  to-night  ?  He  will  be  here  on  Mon- 
day morning  at  the  usual  time  for  opening  the  store,  and 
after  that  will  sleep  in  the  building." 

The  clerks  looked  at  him  for  a  moment,  as  they  might 
at  a  new  piece  of  furniture,  or  labor-saving  machine,  and 
then  coolly  finished  their  duties,  and  followed  their  em- 
ployer. Mr.  Schwartz  showed  him  about  closing  up  the 
store,  the  furnace,  etc.,  and  Dennis  saw  that  his  place  was 
no  sinecure.  Still  it  was  not  work,  but  its  lack  that  he 
dreaded,  and  his  movements  were  so  eager  and  earnest 
that  a  faint  expression  of  surprise  and  curiosity  tinged 
the  broad  stolid  face  of  Mr.  Schwartz,  but  he  only  but- 
toned his  coat  to  the  chin  and  muttered  "  new  broom,'* 
and  went  his  way  homeward,  leaving  Dennis  to  go  his 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE     NEW     BROOM. 

The  following  Sabbath  was  a  bright  Winter  day  with- 
out, but  bright  Summer  in  Dennis's  heart.  He  inquired 
his  way  to  a  neighboring  Church,  and  every  word  of 
prayer,  praise  and  truth  f.ll  on  a  glad,  grateful  spirit. 
Worship  was  a  joy,  not  a  duty.  Returning,  he  wrote  a 
long  letter  to  his  mother,  telling  her  all  he  had  passed 
through,  especially  dwelling  on  the  truth  he  had  discov- 
ered of  God's  wish  to  make  this  life  happy  and  success- 
ful, as  well  as  the  life  beyond. 

In  closing,  he  wrote :  "  Here  am  I,  Dennis  Fleet,  who 
a  few  days  ago  thought  the  world  scarcely  large  enough 
for  what  I  meant  to  do,  standing  contentedly  and  graw- 


j2  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAV. 

fully  in  Pat  Murphy'  j  shoes.  I  will  not  conceal  from  you, 
speaking  figuratively  (the  fates  forbid  that  it  should  be 
literally  true),  that  I  hope  to  outgrow  them,  and  arrive  at 
something  better  before  many  months  pass.  In  the  me'an 
time  I  am  indeed  thankful  for  the  means  of  winning  hon- 
est bread  for  us  all.  It  is  quite  a  come-down  from  the 
classics  and  law  to  the  position  of  porter  and  man-of-all 
work  in  a  picture  and  music  store,  but  if  God  means  me 
to  rise  He  can  lead  me  upward  from  my  lowly  stand-point 
as  well  as  from  the  most  favored  that  I  could  have  chosen 
for  myself  I  have  learned  that  if  I  will  ^rusf  Him  and 
do  present  duty  thoroughly,  He  will  not  forget  me." 

On  Monday  morning,  half  an  hour  before  the  specified 
time,  Dennis  stood  at  the  store.  Impatiently  he  walked 
up  and  down  before  what  would  become  the  scene  of  joys 
and  sorrows,  such  as  he  had  never  before  experienced. 
But  we  will  not  anticipate. 

In  due  time  Mr.  Schwartz  appeared.  He  gave  Den- 
nis a  cool  nod,  and  said  : 

'•  Glad  to  see  you  so  prompt " — then  muttered  again 
to  himself — "  new  broom." 

In  Mr.  Schwartz's  slow  plodding  soul  the  fire  of  enthu- 
siasm had  never  burned.  He  was  eminently  conserva- 
tive, and  looked  with  wary  suspicion  on  anything  that  ap- 
peared like  earnestness.  In  the  midst  of  a  driving,  bust- 
ling Western  city,  he  stuck  in  the  mud  of  his  German 
phlegm,  like  a  snag  in  the  swift  current  of  the  Mississippi, 
Yet  Mr.  Ludolph  found  him  a  most  valuable  assistant. 
He  kept  things  straight.  Under  his  minute  supervision 
every  thing  had  to  be  right  Saturday  night  as  well  as  Mon- 
day morning,  Dec.  31st  as  well  as  Jan.  ist.  He  was  one 
who  through  life  would  be  satisfied  with  a  subordinate  po- 
sition, conscious  of  the  lack  of  enterprise  needful  to  push 
his  own  way  in  the  world.  His  painstaking,  methodical 
spirit  v/as  just  the  kind  to  pervade  a  large  warehouse  like 


THE   NEW    BROOM.  73 

that  he  had  in  charge,  and  prevent  loss  and  confusion  in 
the  multiplicity  of  objects  it  contained.  Pat's  careless 
Irish  ways  had  vexed  his  soul  beyond  words,  and  now 
Dennis's  eager  manner  suggested  a  hair-brained  Yankee 
youth  who  would  raise  a  dust  for  a  week  and  then  be  off 
at  something  else.  He  was  therefore  cool  and  curt,  seek- 
ing by  frostiness  of  manner  to  nip  the  budding  enthusiasm 
that  annoyed  him. 

Dennis  heeded  him  not,  but  bent  every  faculty  to  the 
mastery  of  the  duties  required  of  him.  He  was  to  mop 
out  the  store  with  damp  cloths,  so  as  to  raise  no  dust,  to 
look  after  the  furnace  and^  graduate  the  heat  throughout 
the  building,  to  receive  boxes,  to  assist  in  packing  and  un- 
l^acking  pianos  and  other  musical  instruments  that  occu- 
pied part  of  the  upper  floors,  and  to  make  himself  gen- 
erally useful.  So  far  from  being  an  easy  position,  it  was 
one  that  required  great  strength  and  dispatch,  and  these 
had  been  Pat's  qualities  save  when  drink  got  the  better  of 
him.  For  one  of  his  age,  Dennis  was  very  strong,  and 
his  experience  in  helping  his  mother  in  household  duties 
had  made  him  quick  and  dexterous,  where  most  young  men 
would  have  been  awkward  and  slow.  After  a  day  or  two 
Mr.  Schwartz  relaxed  his  grimness  somewhat,  for  if  Den- 
nis worked  eagerly,  he  also  worked  well  for  a  new  begin- 
ner. Still  it  would  require  several  years  of  well  doing  to 
satisfy  old  Schwartz  that  all  was  right.  But  keen  Mr.  Lu- 
dolph,  with  his  quick  insight  into  character,  watched  this 
"  new  broom  "  a  few  days,  and  then  congratulated  himself 
on  gaining  another  decided  help  toward  the  object  near- 
est his  heart. 

The  other  clerks  were  of  German  descent,  and  under 
Mr.  Schwartz's  rigid  system,  each  one  filled  his  appropri- 
ate niche,  and  performed  carefully  the  duties  assigned. 

Even  to  Dennis's  uncultivated  eye  there  was  a  rigidity 
and  formality  about  the  whole  establishment  not  artistic. 


74  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

At  first  it  was  but  a  feeliu  g — a  vague  impression  that  grew 
upon  him  without  his  scarcely  knowing  why.  He  soon 
discovered  however  that  every  thing  was  arranged  square- 
ly, according  to  system,  order,  and  not  with  a  view  of 
placing  in  the  best  lights  and  shadows  the  beautiful  things 
to  be  sold.  He  saw  that  Mr.  Ludolph  was  annoyed  by 
the  same  defect.  One  bright  day,  when  every  thing  stood 
out 'with  glaring  distinctness,  he  seemed  provoked  beyond 
measure  by  this  inartistic  rigidity,  and  stormed  through 
the  store  at  a  great  rate. 

"This  art-building  and  everybody  and  every  thing  in  it 
look  as  if  they  swallowed  a  yam-rod,"  snarled  he.  Mr. 
Schwartz,  can't  you  teach  the  young  men  to  throw  a  little 
ease  and  grace  into  the  arrangement  of  the  articles  under 
their  charge  ? " 

Mr.  Schwartz  looked  at  him  with  a  blank,  impassive 
face,  and  his  employer  felt  that  he  might  as  well  ask  an 
elephant  to  teach  dancing. 

Turning  suddenly  on  a  stolid  youth,  he  exclaimed, 
"  By  the  gods  !  if  you  have  not  arranged  all  the  statuettes 
on  your  counter  in  straight  lines,  and  half  of  them  with 
their  backs  towards  the  door  at  which  our  customers  enter  ! 
Here,  gather  round  me  while  I  give  you  some  ideas  of  ar- 
rangement." 

They  gathered  around  him,  while  with  hands  of  skill 
and  taste  he  grouped  every  thing  artistically.  The  effect 
of  a  little  transposition  was  marvellous,  and  Mr.  Schwartz 
acknowledged  that  they  looked  doubly  pretty  and  inviting. 
Dennis  stood  at  a  respectful  distance,  but  was  a  close 
observer.  He  was  the  only  one  who  gained  much  benefit 
from  *he  lesson,  because  th^;  only  one  capable  of  receiv- 
ing it.  With  quick,  appreciative  eye  he  saw  the  grouping 
needful  to  produce  the  desired  effect. 

As  Mr.  Ludolph  looked  up  he  caught  Dennis's  intelli- 
gent gaze. 


THE   NEW   BROOM. 


75 


"That  is  right,  Fleet,"  he  said  ;  "you  learn,  toe,  if  you 
can,  and  when  you  are  dusting  around,  see  if  you  cannot 
combine  a  little  order  and  grace  together." 

From  that  day  forward  the  hand  and  taste  of  Dennis 
Fleet  began  gradually,  and  almost  imperceptibly  at  first, 
to  give  a  new  aspect  and  create  a  new  atmosphere  in  .ic 
"Temple  of  Art."  But  at  first  he  was  kept  busy,  enough 
at  his  humble  routine  duties.  Every  one  felt  and  ex- 
pressed a  little  surprise  at  his  getting  into  harness  so 
quickly,  but  the  heavy  atmosphere  that  Mr.  Schwartz  per- 
vaded was  not  conducive  to  conversation  or  emotions, 
however  faint.  All  went  forward  quietly  and  orderly,  like 
well  oiled  machinery.  Customers  received  every  atten- 
tion, and  though  many  no  doubt  had  the  undefined  feeling 
that  something  was  wrong  in  the  arrangement  of  the  store, 
they  all  found  an  abundance  of  beautiful  things  suited  to 
the  taste  and  purse  of  each,  and  so  trade  was  good,  even 
though  the  holiday  season  was  over. 

As  for  Dennis,  he  was  to  a  certain  extent  in  Paradise. 
Nature  had  given  him  a  deep,' earnest  love  of  the  beauti- 
ful, and  keen  perception  of  it. 

Though  his  days  were  busy  indeed,  he  found  time 
gradually  to  study  every  pretty  thing  in  the  store.  Though 
much  was  mystery  to  him  as  yet,  he  felt  himself  over  the 
threshold  of  a  beautiful  world — the  world  of  art.  When 
a  boy  in  New  England  he  had  taken  drawing-lessons,  and 
had  shown  remarkable  aptness.  While  at  college,  also,  he 
had  given  some  attention  to  drawing  and  coloring,  but  cir- 
cumstances had  prevented  him  following  the  bent  of  his 
taste,  but  now  the  passion  awoke  with  ten-fold  force,  and 
he  had  not  been  in  his  place  a  week,  before  he  began  to 
make  sketches  of  little  things  that  pleased  him.  Some  of 
the  pictures  and  bronzes  became  almost  dear,  and  he 
would  view  their  sale  with  a  feeling  akin  to  regret.  Early 
in  the  morning,  when  refreshed  and  brightened  by  the 


76 


BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 


night's  rest,  he  would  walk  through  the  store  as  through 
fairy-land,  and  forgetting  that  he  was  a  humble  servitor, 
would  feel  as  if  all  were  his.  But  in  fact  was  not  his  pos- 
session truer  than  that  of  many  whose  palace  walls  glow 
with  every  rich  gem  of  art,  and  yet  whose  eyes  are 
blind  and  hearts  dull  to  the  beauty  they  have  paid  for  ? 

But  a  few  days  after  his  arrival  a  little  incident  occur- 
red that  was  hard  and  practical  enough,  and  might  justly 
cause  him  to  feel  that  he  occupied  a  humble  place,  not 
only  in  the  world  of  art,  but  the  world  in  general.  There 
had  been  a  day  of  rain,  slush,  and  mud.  One  of  the 
younger  clerks  had  been  sent  out  on  an  errand,  and  came 
in  well  splashed.  Drawing  off  his  boots,  he  threw  them 
to  Dennis,  saying — 

"  Here  you.  Fleet !  black  my  boots  as  quick  as  you 
can.     I  must  go  out  again." 

Dennis  reddened,  and  for  a  moment  drew  himself  up 
as  if  he  had  been  struck.  The  young  man  saw  it  and 
said  in  a  loud,  coarse  tone  that  could  be  heard  by  several 
customers — 

"  Vat !  you  above  your  biz  ?    I  thought  it  would  be  so." 

Dennis  acted  with  decision.  He  meant  to  have  the 
matter  settled  at  once.  Picking  up  the  muddy  boots,  he 
marched  straight  into  Mr.  Ludolph's  office.  That  gentle- 
man looked  up,  impatient  at  interruption,  and  saw  his 
man-of-all-work  standing  before  him  with  the  splashed 
boots  dangling  in  his  hands. 

"  Well !  what  is  it  ?  "  asked  he  sharp!}'. 

"  Mr.  Berder  threw  me  those  boots  and  told  me  to 
black  them.  Is  this  a  part  of  my  duty  here  } "  said  Den- 
nis, in  a  firm,  quiet  tone. 

"  Curse  it  all,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph,  with  much  irritation; 
"1  thought  there  would  be  trouble  with  your  uppij^hriess." 

"  'i'liere  shall  be  no  trouble  whatever,"  said  Dennis ; 
*  bat  1  prefer  to  take  my  orders  from  you,  and  not  from 


THE  NEW  BROOM. 


77 


Mr.  Betder.  If  you  say  this  is  expected,  the  disagreea- 
ble task  shall  be  done  as  well  as  1  can  do  it." 

Mr.  Ludolph  looked  sharply  at  the  young  man  for  a 
moment  and  hesitated.  In  his  heart  he  felt  that  he  was 
speaking  to  a  gentleman,  and  that  it  was  not  the  thing  to 
ask  of  him  such  menial  work.  But  his  irritation  and  de- 
sire to  crush  out  anything  like  insubordination,  prevailed. 
Still,  rather  than  directly  order  it,  he  appealed  to  the  cus- 
tom of  the  past,  and  stepping  to  the  door  of  the  office  he 
called — 

"  Mr.  Schwartz,  come  here  !  Did  Pat  black  the  shoes 
of  the  gentiemeti  of  this  store  ?  " 

"  Yes  sir." 

"  You  took  Pat  Murphy's  place,  did  you  not  ?  " 

"Yes  sir,"  said  Dennis. 

"  It  seems  to  me,  then,  that  this  settles  the  question  ; " 
said  Mr.  Ludolph,  coolly,  turning  to  his  writing,  but  he 
furtively  and  carefully  watched  Dennis's  course. 

Determined  to  show  that  he  was  not  above  his  busi- 
ness, that  he  accepted  the  bitter  with  the  sweet,  Dennis 
went  up-stairs  to  his  room,  got  blacking  and  brush,  and 
taking  his  station  in  a  corner  where  Mr.  Ludolph  could 
plainly  see  him  through  the  glass  doors  of  his  office,  he 
polished  away  as  vigorously  as  if  that  were  his  only  call- 
ing. Mr.  Ludolph  looked  and  smiled.  His  was  a  nature 
that  could  be  pleased  with  a  small  triumph  like  this.  But 
the  other  clerks,  seeing  Mr.  Berder's  success,  and  deter- 
mining to  do  their  part,  also,  in  taking  Dennis  "down  a 
peg,"  as  they  expressed  it,  brought  their  boots,  too,  and 
Mr.  Berder  came  with  Kis  again  in  the  afternoon.  Den- 
nis cleaned  and  polished  away  in  full  view  of  Mr.  Lu- 
dolph, who  began  to  realize  with  vexation  that  his  man-of- 
all-work  would  have  little  time  for  the  duties  of  the  store, 
if  he  were  installed  generai  boot-black  of  the  establish- 
ment But,  after  this,  cold  and  snow  kept  the  streets  drv 
4* 


78  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

and  clean  for  some  time,  and  the  matter  passed  on  with- 
out further  notice.  A  pair  of  boots  were  seldom  brought 
to  him,  and  when  they  were,  they  were  cleaned  without  i 
word  In  the  mean  time,  his  ability  and  faithfulness  in  the 
discharge  of  his  regular  duties,  and  in  some  slight  degree 
his  taste  and  judgment,  began  to  be  recognized,  and  Mr. 
Ludolph  congratulated  himself  that  in  giving  Dennis  Pat 
Murphy's  shoes,  he  had  made  a  decided  change  for  the 
better. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

TOO     MUCH    ALIKE. 

One  of  the  duties  that  Dennis  enjoyed  most  was  tne 
opening  of  new  goods.  With  the  curiosity  and  pleasure 
of  a  child  he  would  unpack  the  treasures  of  Art  consigned 
'to  his  employer,  and  when  a  number  of  boxes  were  left  at 
the  front  door,  he  was  eager  to  see  the  contents.  During 
his  first  three  weeks  at  the  stor£  there  had  not  been  many 
such  arrivals  of  goods  and  pictures.  They  were  working 
off  the  old  stock  bought  before  the  holidays.  But  now  new 
things  were  coming  in.  Chief  of  all,  Mr.  Ludolph  was 
daily  expecting  pictures  imported  directly  from  Europe. 

One  afternoon  early  in  February  a  large  flat  box  was 
brought  to  the  store.  Mr.  Ludolph  examined  its  marks, 
smiled,  and  told  Dennis  to  open  it  with  great  care,  cuttirg 
every  na.'  with  a  chisel.  There  \vas  little  need  of  caution 
ing  him.  He  would  have  bruised  his  right  hand  rather 
than  mar  one  line  oi  beauty. 

The  "  Art  Building  ''  contained  two  or  three  small  show- 
rooms, where  the  more  valuable  pictures  could  be  exhibit- 
ed in  better  li^ht.     Into  one  of  these   the  large  box  was 


TOO   MUCH   ALIKE. 


79 


carried,  and  most  carefully  opened.  The  two  clerks  who 
were  helping  Dennis  laughed  at  his  eager  interest,  and 
called  him  under  their  breath  a  "  green  'un."  Mr.  Schwartz 
looked  upon  him  as  a  mild  sort  of  a  lunatic.  But  Mr.  Lu- 
dolph,"  who  stood  near,  to  see  if  the  picture  was  all  safe 
and  right,  watched  him  with  some  curiosity.  His  manner 
was  certainly  very  diiferent  from  Pat  Murphy's  at  such  a 
time,  and  his  interest  both  amused  and  pleased  him. 

When  at  last  the  picture  was  lifted  from  the  box  and 
placed  on  a  large  easel,  all  exclaimed  at  its  beauty  save 
Dennis.  On  looking  at  him,  they  saw  that  his  eyes  had 
filled  v/ith  tears,  and  his  lips  were  quivering  so  that  he 
could  not  have  spoken. 

"  Is  she  a  relation  of  yours  ?  "  asked  Mr.  Schwartz  in  a 
matter-of-fact  tone. 

A  loud  laugh  followed  this  sally  from  such  an  unusual 
source.  Dennis  turned  on  his  heel,  left  the  room,  and 
busied  himself  with  duties  in  a  distant  part  of  the  store, 
the  rest  of  the  day.  It  seemed  to  him  that  they  were  like 
savages  bartering  away  gold  and  pearls,  whose  value  they, 
could  not  understand ;  much  less  could  they  realize  his 
possession  of  a  nature  of  exquisite  sensibility  to  beauty. 

When  all  were  gone  he  returned  to  the  room,  and  sat 
down  before  the  picture  in  wrapt  attention.  It  was  indeed 
a  fine  work  of  Art,  finished  in  that  painstaking  manner 
characteristic  of  the  Germans. 

The  painting  was  a  Winter  scene  in  Germany.  In  the 
far  back  ground  rose  wooded  and  snow-clad  hills.  Near- 
er in  the  perspective  was  a  bold  bluff,  surmounted  by  a 
half  ruined  castle.  Beneath  them  flowed  a  river  now  a 
sniooth  glare  of  ice,  and  in  the  distance  figures  were 
wheeling  about  upon  skates.  In  the  immediate  foreground 
ware  two  persons.  One  was  a  lovely  young  girl,  dressed 
m  black  velvet  trimmed  with  ermine.  The  basque  fitted 
closely  to  her  person,  revealing  its  graceful  outlines,  and 


8o  BARRIERS   BURNED  AWAY. 

was  evidently  adapted  to  the  active  sport  in  which  she  was 
engaged.  While  the  rich  warm  blood  mantled  her  cheeks, 
the  snow  was  not  whiter  than  her  temples  and  brow.  A 
profusion  of  wavy  hair  flowed  down  her  shoulders,  scatter- 
ed threads  of  which  glistened  like  gold  in  the  slanting  rays 
of  the  sun.  Her  eyes  (that  were  not  of  a  pale  china  blue, 
but  of  a  deep  violet  rather)  were  turned  half  in  scorn  and 
half  in  sympathy  with  the  full,  smiling  mouth,  upon  the 
figure  of  a  young  man  kneeling  at  her  feet,  making  awk- 
ward attempts  to  fasten  her  skate  to  the  trim  little  foot. 
It  was  evident  that  the  favor  was  too  much  for  him,  and 
that  his  fluttering  heart  made  trembling  and  unskilful 
hands.  But  the  expression  of  the  maiden's  face  clearly 
indicated  that  her  heart  was  as  cold  towards  him  as  the  ice 
on  which  he  knelt. 

The  extreme  beauty  of  the  picture  and  its  exquisite 
finish  fascinated  Dennis,  while  the  girl's  face  jarred  upon 
his  feelings  like  a  musical  discord.  After  gazing  fixedly 
for  a  long  time,  he  said — 

"  What  possessed  the  man  to  paint  such  a  lovely  face 
and  make  its  expression  only  that  of  scorn,  pride,  and 
heartless  merriment?  " 

All  the  long  night  the  face  haunted  and  troubled  him. 
He  saw  it  in  his  dreams.  It  had  for  him  a  strong  interest 
that  he  could  not  understand — that  strange  fascination 
which  a  very  beautiful  thing  that  has  been  marred  and 
wronged  has  for  some  natures.  So  powerful  was  this  im- 
pression upon  his  sensitive  nature,  that  he  caught  himself 
saying,  as  of  a  living  being — 

"  O  that  I  could  give  to  that  face  the  expression  God 
meant  it  to  have." 

And  then  he  laughed  at  his  own  folly. 

His  wakefulness  caused  him  to  over-sleep  the  next 
morning,  and  he  was  later  than  usual  in  getting  through 
the  routine  duties  of  the  store.     At  length,  about  9  o'clock, 


TOO   MUCH   ALIKE.  8l 

dusty  and  begrimed  from  mopping,  feeding  the  furnace, 
etc.,  he  stood  with  duster  and  brush  in  hand  before  the 
painting  that  had  so  disturbed  his  rest.  He  was  in  his 
shirt  sleeves,  and  in  careful  economy  had  a  large  coarse 
apron  of  ticking  girded  about  his  person.  His  black  dis- 
hevelled locks  looked  like  an  inverted  crow's  nest,  and 
altogether  he  was  unpresentable,  appearing  more  like  the 
presiding  divinity  of  a  dust  heap  than  of  an  "  Art  Building." 

After  gazing  a  few  moments  on  the  scornfuTbeautiful 
face  that  might  have  obtained  its  haughty  patrician  linea- 
ments from  the  old  barons  of  the  ruined  castle  just  above, 
he  seemed  to  grow  conscious  of  this  himself,  and  shrank 
behind  the  picture  half  ashamed,  as  if  she  could  see  him. 

While  engaged  a  few  moments  in  cleaning  off  some 
stains  and  marks  upon  the  frame,  he  did  not  hear  a  light 
footstep  in  the  room.  Finishing  his  task,  he  stepped  out 
from  behind  the  picture  with  the  purpose  of  leaving  the 
apartment,  when  a  vision  met  his  gaze  which  startled  him 
to  that  degree  that  he  dropped  his  brush  and  duster  clatter- 
ing upon  the  floor,  and  stood  transfixed  with  not  only  eyes 
open  wide  but  mouth  also.  There  before  him,  in  flesh  and 
blood  it  seemed,  stood  the  lady  of  the  picture — the  same 
dress,  the  same  beautiful  blonde  face,  and  chief  of  all  the 
same  expression.  He  was  made  conscious  of  his  absurd 
position  by  a  suppressed  titter  from  the  clerks  at  the  door, 
and  a  broad  laugh  from  Mr.  Ludolph.  The  beautiful  face 
turned  toward  him  for  a  moment,  and  he  felt  himself  looked 
over  from  head  to  foot.  At  first  there  was  an  expression 
of  vexation  at  the  interruption,  and  then  as  if  impressed  by 
the  ludicrousness  of  his  appearance,  the  old  laughing,  scorn- 
ful expi  5ssion  returned.  Casting  a  quick,  furtive  glance 
dif  the  picture,  which  seemed  to  satisfy  him,  Dennis,  with 
hot  cheeks,  gathered  up  his  tools  and  beat  a  hasty  retreat* 
As  he  passed  out,  Mr.  Ludolph  asked  good-naturedly-—- 

"  Why,  Fleet,  what  is  the  matter  ?" 


82  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

"  Indeed,  sir,  I  hardly  know,"  answered  the  bewildered 
youth,  "  but  it  seems  to  me  that  I  have  lost  my  wits  since 
that  picture  came.  For  a  moment  I  thought  that  the  lady 
on  the  canvas  had  stepped  out  upon  the  floor." 

"  Now  that  you  speak  of  it,"  exclaimed  Mr.  Ludolph 
advancing  into  the  room,  "  there  is  a  striking  resemblance." 

"  Nonsense  !  father,"  Dennis  heard  the  young  lady  say; 
"  you  are  too  old  to  flatter.  As  for  that  hair-brained  youth 
of  the  dffet-brush,  he  looked  as  if  he  might  have  the  fail- 
ing of  poor  Pat,  and  not  always  be  able  to  see  straight." 

At  this  Dennis's  cheeks  grew  hotter  stiU,  while  a  low 
laugh  from  one  or  two  of  the  clerks  near  showed  that  they 
were  enjoying  his  embarrassment. 

Dennis  hastened  away  to  his  room,  and  it  was  well  that 
he  did  not  hear  the  conversation  that  followed. 

"  O  no  !  "  responded  Mr.  Ludolph,  "  that  is  not  Den 
nis's  failing.     He  is  a  member  of  a  church  in  '  good  and 
regular  standing.'     He  will  be  one  of  the  '  pillars '  by  and 
bye." 

"  You  are  always  having  a  fling  at  superstition  and  the 
superstitious,"  said  his  daughter  laughingly.  "  Is  that  the 
reason  you  installed  him  in  Pat's  shoes  ?  " 

"  Can  you  doubt  it  my  dear  ? "  replied  her  father  in 
mock  solemnity.  "  Remember  our  experience  with  Dea- 
con Gudgeon." 

The  girl  crimsoned  to  her  hair  and  gnawed  her  lip  with 
vexation,  evidently  recalling  some  very  unpleasant  epi- 
sode of  the  past. 

"  A  truce  to  all  that,"  she  said ;  "  you  will  have  no  fur- 
ther trouble  on  that  score." 

There  was  keen  scrutiny  for  a  moment  in  her  father's 
face,  and  her  answer  gave  him  evident  satisfaction.  It 
was  clear  that  his  remark  had  in  it  more  than  mere  bad 
inage.  In  fact  Mr.  Ludolph  was  too  long  headed  and 
wily  to  use  many  careless,  pointless  words. 


TOO  MUCH   ALIKE.  83 

"Well! "  said  she  as  if  anxious  to  change  the  subject, 
"  I  think  your  new  factotum  faifs  decidedly  in  good  man 
ners,  if  nothing  else.  He  stared  most  impudently  at  me 
when  he  came  out  from  behind  the  picture.  I  should  have 
reprimanded  him  myself  if  I  had  not  been  so  full  of  laugh 
at  his  ridiculous  appearance." 

"  That's  the  joke  of  it.  It  was  as  good  as  a  play  to  see 
aim.  I  never  saw  a  man  more  startled  and  confused.  He 
evidently  thought  for  a  moment,  as  he  said,  that  the  girl 
in  the  painting  had  stepped  out  upon  the  floor,  and  that 
you  were  she." 

"  How  absurd !  "  exclaimed  his  daughter. 

"  Yes,  and  now  while  I  think  of  it,  he  glanced  from  you 
to  the  picture  to  satisfy  himself  that  his  senses  were  not 
deceiving  him,  before  he  started  to  come  away." 

"  I  cannot  see  any  special  resemblance,"  she  replied, 
at  the  same  time  inwardly  pleased  that  she  should  be 
thought  like  the  beautiful  creature  on  the  canvas. 

"  But  there  is  a  strong  resemblance,"  persisted  her  fa- 
ther, "especially  in  general  effect.  I  will  prove  it  to  you. 
There  is  old  Schwartz ;  he  is  not  troubledwith  imagina- 
tion, but  sees  things  just  as  they  are.  He  would  look  at 
you,  my  dainty  daughter,  as  if  you  were  a  bale  of  wool, 
and  judge  as  composedly  and  accurately." 

"I  fear,,  my  father,"  replied  she  smilingly,  "that  you 
have  conspired  with  him  to  pull  the  entire  bale  over  my 
eyes.     Buc  let  him  come." 

By  this  time  Dennis  had  returned,  and  commenced 
dusting  some  pictures  near  the  entrance,  where  he  could 
see  and  hear.  He  felt  impelled  by  a  curiosity  that  he  could 
not  resist.  Moreover  he  had  a  little  natural  vanity  in  wish- 
ing to  show  that  he  was  not  such  a  fright,  after  all.  It  was 
hard  for  him  to  remember  that  he  stood  in  Pat  Murphy's 
shoes.  What  difference  did  it  make  to  the  lady  whether 
such  zh  he  was  a  frijrht  or  not  ? 


84  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

Mr.  Schwartz  entered,  and  at  Mr.  Ludolph's  bidding 
looked  at  the  living  and  the  painted  girl.  In  his  slow  sen- 
tentious tones,  one  could  not  help  feeling  that  he  was  tell- 
ing just  how  things  appeared  to  him.  The  young  lady 
stood  beside  the  painting  and  unconsciously  assumed  the 
expression  of  her  fair  shadow.  Indeed  it  seemed  an  expres- 
sion but  too  habitual  to  her  face. 

"  Yes,"  he  said,  "  there  is  a  decided  resemblance — close 
in  dress — close  in  complexion — color  of  hair  much  the  same 
• — eyes  much  alike — Miss  Ludolph  not  quite  so  tall,"  etc. 
Then  with  an  awkward  attempt  at  a  compliment,  like  an  ele- 
phant trying  to  execute  a  quickstep,  he  continued, 

''  If  I  may  be  permitted  to  be  so  bold  as  to  speak — ex- 
press an  opinion — I  should  beg  leave  to  say  that  Miss 
Ludolph  favors  herself — more  favored — is  better  looking," 
he  blurted  out  at  last,  backing  out  of  the  door  at  the  same 
time,  with  his  brow  bathed  in  perspiration  from  the  throes 
of  this  great  and  unwonted  effort  at  gallantry. 

"  Bah  !  "  said  Dennis  to  himself,  "  the  old  mote  left  out 
the  very  chief  thing  in  tracing  the  likeness — the  expression ! 
Look  at  her  now  as  she  listens  to  his  awkward  attempt  at 
compliment.  And  she  is  looking  at  him  with  the  same 
scornful,  laughing  face  that  the  girl  in  the  picture  wears 
towards  the  bungling  admirer  at  her  feet.  He  is  right  in 
one  thing  though,  she  is  better  looking." 

But  the  moment  Mr.  Schwartz's  bulky  figure  vanished 
from  the  door-way,  Miss  Ludolph  caught  the  critical,  intelli- 
gent gaze  of  Dennis  Fleet,  and  the  expression  of  her  face 
changed  inslanily  to  a  frown.  But  to  do  her  justice,  it  was 
more  in  vexation  with  herself  than  him.  ^^'ith  innate  del- 
icacy of  feeling  she  saw  that  it  looked  like  small  vanity  to 
be  standing  there  while  cumpariscns  like  the  above  were 
"nstilutcd.  Her  manner  at  once  became  cold,  observ^.nt, 
and  thoroughly  self  pf'S-^cssed.     She  stepied  out  into  tha 


TOO  MUCH   ALIKE.  85 

store,  and  by  a  few,  keen,  critical  glances,  seemed  to  take 
in  its  whole  effect.     Again  disapprobation  clouded  her  fair 
brow,  and  she  pronounced  audibly  but  one  word — "stiff" 
Then  she  passed  into  her  father's  private  office. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

BLUE   BLOOD. 

Dennis's  mind  was  a  chaos  of  conflicting  feelings.  As 
had  the  picture,  so  the  beautiful  girl,  that  it  by  strange  co- 
incidence so  strongly  resembled,  deeply  interested  him.  It 
CQuld  not  be  otherwise  with  one  of  his  beauty-loving  nature. 
And  yet  the  impression  made  by  the  face  in  the  painting  of 
something  wrong,  discordant,  was  felt  more  decidedly  in 
respect  to  the  living  face. 

But  before  he  had  time  to  realize  what  had  just  passed, 
the  lady  and  her  father  appeared  at  the  door  of  the  office 
and  he  heard  Mr.  Ludolph  say — 

"  I  know  you  are  right  my  dear.  It's  all  wrong.  The 
arrangement  of  the  store  is  as  stiff  and  methodical  as  if  we 
were  engaged  in  selling  mathematical  instruments.  But 
I  have  not  time  to  attend  to  the  matter,  and  there  is  not 
one  in  the  store  that  has  the  least  idea  of  artistic  combina- 
tion, unless  it  is  Fleet.  I  have  noticed  some  encouraging 
symptoms  in  him." 

"  What !  he  of  the  duster  and  mop  ?  I  fear  our  case  is 
desperate,  then,  if  he  is  our  best  hope." 

Dennis's  cheeks  were  burning  again,  but  turning  his 
back  he  rubbed  away  harder  than  ever  at  a  Greek  god  that 
he  was  polishing.  But  they  gave  him  no  thought.  Speak 
ing  with  sudden  animation  the  young  lady  said, 


86  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

"  Father,  I  am  a  great  mind  to  try  it  myself, — that  is,  if 
you  are  willing." 

"  But,  my  daughter,  I  could  not  permit  you  to  be  en- 
gaged in  any  such  employment  before  our  customers." 

"'  Certainly  not !  I  would  come  early  in  the  morning, 
before  art-customers  are  stirring.  I  really  would  enjoy 
the  task  greatly,  if  I  had  any  one  to  help  me  who  could  in 
some  faint  degree  comprehend  the  effects  I  wished  to  pro- 
duce. The  long  Spring  mornings  soon  to  come,  would  be 
just  the  time  for  it.  To  what  better  use  could  I  put  my 
taste  and  knowledge  of  art,  than  in  helping  you  and  fur- 
thering our  plan  for  life  .'*  " 

Mr.  Ludolph  hesitated  between  his  pride  and  strong 
desire  to  gain  the  advantages  which  this  offer  would  se- 
cure.    Finally  he  said, 

"  We  will  think  about  it ;  I  am  expecting  a  great  many 
new  and  beautiful  things  early  in  the  Spring,  and  no  doubt 
it  would  be  well  then  to  re-arrange  the  store  completely, 
and  break  up  the  rigid  system  into  which  we  have  fallen. 
In  the  mean  time  I  appreciate  your  offer,  and  thank  you 
warmly." 

Dennis's  heart  leaped  up  within  him  at  the  thought  of 
instruction  from  such  a  teacher,  and  longed  to  offer  his 
services.  But  he  rightly  judged  that  they  would  be  re- 
garded as  an  impertinence  at  that  time.  The  successor 
of  Pat  Murphy  was  not  expected  to  know  anything  of  art, 
or  have  any  appreciation  of  it.  So  he  bent  his  head  lower, 
but  gave  Jupiter  Olympus  such  a  rubbing  down  as  the  god 
had  deserved  long  ago.  In  a  moment  more  Miss  Ludolph 
passed  him  on  her  way  out  of  the  store,  noticing  him  no 
more  ihau  his  dust-brush. 

The  development  of  this  narrative  now  requires  a 
more  full  and  definite  statement  in  regard  to  Mr.  Ludolph 
and  his  daughter.     He  was  the  younger  son  of  a  noble 


BLUE  BLOOD.  87 

bill  impoverished  German  family,  and  was  intensely  proud 
of  his  patrician  blood.  His  parents  knowing  that  he 
would  have  to  make  his  own  way  in  the  world,  had  sent 
him,  while  a  mere  boy,  to  this  country,  and  placed  him  in 
charge  of  an  old  friend  and  distant  relative,  who  was  en- 
gaged in  the  picture-trade  in  New  York.  He  had  here 
learned  to  speik  English  in  his  youth  with  the  fluency  and 
accuracy  of  a  native,  but  had  never  become  Americanized, 
so  strongly  had  he  inherited  family  pride  and  clung  to  the 
traditions  of  his  own  land. 

He  showed  great  business  ability  in  his  chosen  calling, 
especially  displaying  remarkable  judgment  in  the  selec- 
tion of  works  of  art.  So  unusual  was  his  skill  in  this  di- 
rection, that  when  twenty-one  he  was  sent  abroad  to  pur- 
chase pictures.  For  several  years  he  travelled  through 
Europe.  He  became  quite  cosmopolitan  in  character, 
and  for  a  time  enjoyed  life  abundantly.  His  very  business 
brought  him  in  contact  with  artists  and  men  of  culture, 
while  his  taste  ^.nd  love  of  beauty  were  daily  gratified. 
He  had  abundant  means,  and  money  could  open  many 
doors  of  pleasure  to  one  who,  like  him,  was  in  vigorous 
health  and  untroubled  by  a  conscience.  Moreover,  he 
was  able  to  spend  much  time  in  his  beloved  Germany,  and 
while  there  the  great  ambition  of  his  life  entered  his 
.heart.  His  elder  brother,  who  was  living  in  exclusive 
pride  and  narrow  economy  on  the  ancient  but  diminished 
ancestral  estate,  ever  received  him  graciously.  This  bro- 
ther had  married,  but  had  not  been  blessed  or  cursed  with 
children,  for  the  German  baron,  with  his  limited  finances, 
could  never  decide  in  what  light  to  regard  them.  Too 
poor  to  mingle  with  his  equals,  too  proud  to  stoop  to  those 
whom  he  regarded  as  inferiors,  he  had  lived  much  • 
alone,  and  grown  narrower  and  more  bigoted  in  his  family 
pride  day  by  day.  Indeed,  that  he  was  Baron  Ludolph, 
was  the  one  great  fact  of  his  life.     He  spent  hours  in  con- 


88  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

ning  over  yellow,  musty  records  of  the  ancient  grandeur 
of  his  house,  and  would  gloat  over  heroic  deeds  of  ances- 
tors he  never  thought  of  imitating.  In  brief,  he  was  like 
a  small  barnacle  on  an  old  and  water-logged  ship,  that 
once  had  made  many  a  gallant  and  prosperous  voyage 
richly  freighted,  but  now  had  drifted  into  shallow  water 
and  was  falling  to  decay.  He  made  a  suggestion,  how- 
ever, to  his  younger  brother,  that  wakened  the  ambition 
of  his  stronger  nature,  and  set  him  about  what  became  his 
controlling  purpose,  his  life-work. 

"  Make  a  fortune  in  America,"  said  his  brother,  "  and 
come  back  and  restore  the  ancient  wealth  and  glory  of 
your  family." 

The  seed  fell  into  receptive  soil,  and  from  that  day  the 
art  and  pleasure-loving  citizen  of  the  world  became  an 
earnest  man  with  a  purpose.  But  as  he  chose  his  purpose 
mainly  from  selfish  motives,  it  did  not  become  an  enno- 
bling one.  He  now  gave  double  attention  to  business  and 
practical  economy.  He  at  once  formed  the  project  of 
starting  in  business  for  himself,  and  of  putting  the  large 
profits  resulting  from  his  judicious  selection  of  pictures 
into  his  own  pocket. 

He  made  the  most  careful  arrangements,  and  secured 
agencies  that  he  could  trust  in  the  purchase  of  pictures 
after  he  should  return  to  the  United  States. 

While  in  Paris,  on  his  way  back,  an  event  occurred  that 
had  a  most  untoward  influence  on  his  plans  and  hopes. 
He  fell  desperately  in  love  with  abeautiful  French  woman. 
Like  himself,  she  was  poor,  but  of  patrician  blood,  and  was 
Very  fascinating.  She  attracted  him  by  her  extreme  beauty 
and  briliiancy.  She  was  very  shrewd,  and  could  seem 
anything  she  chose,  being  a  perfect  actress  in  rtie  false, 
h(jllow  hfe  of  the  world.  In  accordance  with  Parisian 
ideas,  she  wanted  a  husband  to  pay  her  bills,  to  be  a  sort 
<A  protector  and  base  of  general   operations.     Here  was 


BLUE   BLOOD.  89 

a  man  who  promised  well,  fine  looking,  and  if  not  rich, 
capable  of  making  large  sums  of  money. 

She  insinuated  herself  into  his  confidence,  and  ap 
peared  to  share  his  enthusiasm  for  the  darling  project  of 
his  life.  He  felt  that  with  such  a  beautiful  and  sympa- 
thetic woman  to  spur  him  on  and  share  his  success,  earth 
would  be  a  Paradise  indeed ;  and  she  assured  him,  in 
many  delicate  and  bewitching  ways,  that  it  would.  In 
brief,  he  married  her ;  and  then  learned,  in  bitterness, 
anger,  and  disgust,  that  she  had  totally  deceived  him.  To 
his  passionate  love  she  returned  indifference ;  to  his  de- 
sire for  economy,  unbounded  extravagance,  contracting 
debts  which  he  must  pay  to  avoid  disgrace.  She  showed 
an  utter  unwillingness  to  leave  the  gayety  of  Paris,  laugh- 
ing to  his  face  at  his  plan  of  life,  and  assuring  him  that 
she  would  never  live  in  so  stupid  a  place  as  Germany, 
His  love  died  hard.  He  made  every  appeal  to  her  that 
affection  could.  He  tried  entreaty,  tenderness,  coldness, 
anger,  but  all  in  vain.  Selfish  to  the  core,  loving  him  not, 
utterly  unscrupulous,  she  trod  upon  his  quivering  heart  as 
recklessly  as  the  stones  of  the  street.  Soon  he  saw  that, 
in  spite  of  his  vigilance,  he  was  in  danger  of  being  be- 
trayed in  a//  respects.  Then  he  grew  hard  and  fierce. 
The  whole  of  his  strong  German  nature  was  aroused.  In 
a  tone  and  manner  that  startled  and  frightened  her,  he 
said : 

"  JVe  sail  for  New  York  in  three  days.  Be  ready.  If 
you  prove  unfaithful  to  me — if  you  seek  to  desert  me,  I 
will  ki// you.  I  swear  it — not  by  God,  for^I  don't  believe 
in  Him.  If  he  existed,  such  creatures  as  you  would  not. 
But  I  swear  it  by  my  family  pride  and  name,  which  are 
dearer  to  me  than  life,  if  you  leave  a  stain  upon  them  you 
shall  die.  You  need  not  seek  to  escape  me.  I  would  fol- 
low you  through  the  world.  I  would  kill  you  on  the  crowd- 
ed street — anywhere,  even  though  I  died  myself  the  next 
moment.     And  now  look  well  to  your  steps." 


90 


BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 


The  glitter  of  his  eye  was  as  cold  and  remorseless  as 
the  sheen  of  steel.  She  saw  that  he  meant,  and  would  do 
just  what  he  said. 

This  woman  had  one  good  point,  at  least  it  turned  out 
to  be  such  m  this  case.  She  was  a  coward  naturally,  and 
her  bad  life  made  her  dread  nothing  so  much  as  death. 
Her  former  flippant  indifference  to  his  remonstrances  now 
changed  into  abject  fear.  He  saw  her  weak  side,  learned 
his  power,  and  from  that  time  forward  kept  her  within 
bounds  by  a  judicious  system  of  terrorism. 

He  took  her  to  New  York  and  commanded  her  to  ap- 
pear the  charming  woman  she  could,  if  she  chose.  She 
obeyed,  and  rather  enjoyed  the  excitement  and  deceit. 
His  friends  were  delighted  with  her,  but  he  received  their 
congratulations  with  a  grim,  quiet  smile.  At  times,  though, 
when  she  was  receiving  them  with  all  grace,  beauty,  and 
sweetness,  the  thought  of  what  she  was,  seemed  only  a 
horrid  dream.  But  he  had  merely  to  catch  her  eye  with 
its  gleam  of  fear  and  hate,  to  know  the  truth. 

He  felt  that  he  could  not  trust  to  the  continuance  of 
her  good  behavior,  and  was  anxious  to  get  away  among 
strangers  as  soon  as  possible. 

He  therefore  closed  up  his  business  relations  in  New 
York.  Though  she  had  crippled  him  greatly  by  her  ex- 
travagance, he  had  been  able  to  bring  out  a  fair  stock  of 
good  pictures,  and  a  large  number  of  articles  of  virtu, 
selected  with  his  usual  taste.  The  old  firm  finding  that 
they  could  not  keep  him,  offered  all  the  goods  he  wanted 
on  commission.  So  in  a  few  weeks  he  started  for  Chi- 
cago, the  most  promising  city  of  the  West,  as  he  believed, 
and  estalilished  himself  there  in  a  modest  way.  Still 
the  chances  were  even  against  him,  for  he  had  involved 
himself  heavilv,  and  drawn  to  the  utmost  on  his  credit  in 
stalling.  If  he  could  not  sell  largely  the  first  year,  he 
was  a  broken  man.     For  months  the  balance  wavered, 


BLUE  BLOOD.  ^X 

and  he  Tived  with  financial  ruin  on  one  side,  and  domestic 
ruin  on  the  other.  But,  with  a  heart  of  ice  and  nerves  of 
steel,  he  kept  his  hand  on  the  helm. 

H«s  beautiful  collection,  though  in  an  unpretentious 
store,  at  last  attracted  attention,  and  after  some  little  time 
it  became  the  thing  in  the  fashionable  world  to  go  there, 
and  from  that  time  forward  his  fortune  was  made. 

When  his  wife  became  a  mother,  there  was  a  faint  hope 
in  Mr.  Ludolph's-heart  that  this  event  might  awaken  the 
woman  within  her,  if  aught  of  the  true  woman  existed. 
He  tried  to  treat  her  with  more  kindness,  but  found  it 
would  not  answer.  She  mistook  it  for  weakness  and  giv- 
ing way  on  his  part.  From  first  to  last  she  acted  in  the 
most  heartless  manner,  and  treated  the  child  with  shame- 
less neglect.  This  banished  from  her  husband  even  the 
shadow  of  regard,  and  he  cursed  her  to  her  face.  Thence- 
forth will  and  ambition  controlled  his  life  and  hers,  and 
with  an  iron  hand  he  held  her  in  check.  She  saw  that 
she  was  in  the  power  of  a  desperate  man,  who  would  sac- 
rifice her  in  a  moment  if  she  thwarted  him. 

Through  cowardly  fear  she  remained  his  reluctant  but 
abject  slave,  pricking  him  with  the  pins  and  needles  of 
petty  annoyances,  when  she  would  have  pierced  him  to 
the  heart  had  she  dared.  This  monstrous  state  of  aiTairs 
could  not  last  forever,  and  had  not  death  terminated  the 
unnatural  relation,  some  terrible  catastrophe  would  no 
doubt  have  occurred  Having  contracted  a  Western  fe- 
ver, she  soon  became  delirious,  and  passed  away  in  this 
unconscious  state,  to  the  intense  joy  and  relief  of  her 
husband. 

But  the  child  lived,  thrived,  and  developed  into  the 
giaceful  girl  whose  beauty  surpassed,  as  we  have  seen, 
even  the  painter's  ideal.  Her  father  at  first  cared  little 
for  the  infant,  but  secured  it  every  attention.  But  as  it 
developed  into  a  pretty  girl,  with  winning  ways,  and  rich 


92 


BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 


promise,  he  gradually  associated  her  with  his  hopes  and 
plans,  till  at  last  she  became  an  essential  part  of  his  am- 
bition. 

His  plan  now  was  briefly  this :  He  would  entangle 
himself  with  no  alliances  or  intimate  associations  in  Amer- 
ica, nor  would  he  permit  his  daughter  to  do  so.  His  only 
object  in  staying  here  was  the  accumulation  of  a  large  for- 
tune, and  to  this  for  a  few  years  he  would  bend  every  en- 
ergy of  mind  and  body.  As  soon  as  he  felt  that  he  had 
sufficient  means  to  live  in  such  style  as  befitted  the  ancient 
and  honorable  name  of  his  family,  he  would  return  to 
Germany,  buy  all  that  he  could  of  the  ancestral  estate 
that  from  time  to  time  had  been  parted  with,  and  restore 
his  house  to  its  former  grandeur.  He  himself  would  then 
seek  a  marriage  connection  that  would  strengthen  his  so- 
cial position,  while  his  daughter  also  should  make  a  bril- 
liant alliance  with  some  member  of  the  nobility.  Mr. 
Ludolph  was  a  handsome,  well-preserved  man ;  he  had 
been  most  successful  in  business,  and  was  now  more  rap- 
idly than  ever  accumulating  that  which  is  truly  a  power 
with  Europeans  of  blue  blood,  as  with  democratic  Ameri- 
cans who  are  satisfied  to  have  their  vital  fluid  of  the  ordi- 
nary red  color.  Moreover,  his  daughter's  beauty  promised 
to  be  such,  that,  when  enhanced  by  every  worldly  advan- 
tage, it  might  well  command  attention  in  the  highest  cir- 
cles. He  sought  with  scrupulous  care  to  give  her  just 
the  education  that  would  enable  her  to  shine  as  a  star 
among  the  high-born.  Art,  music,  and  knowledge  of  lit- 
erature, especially  the  German,  were  the  main  things  to 
which  her  attention  was  directed,  and  in  her  father,  with 
his  richly  stored  mind,  faultless  taste,  and  cultured  voice, 
she  had  an  instructor  such  as  rarely  falls  to  the  lot  of  the 
most  favored. 


DEACON  GUDGEON'S  SON.  99 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

DEACON     gudgeon's*    SON. 

When  his  daughter  was  a  young  miss  of  fourteen,  a 
trouble  occurred  that  might  have  sadly  marred  Mr.  Lu- 
dolph's  finely  spun  web  by  which  he  sought  to  catch  the 
golden  prizes  of  the  future. 

Christine,  for  that  was  her  name,  was  then  a  merry 
school  girl,  attending  one  of  the  best  and  most  fas!  ionable 
institutes  for  young  ladies  in  the  city.  On  her  way  to  and 
fro  she  had  been  strongly  attracted  by  a  ruddy-faced  youth 
who  seemed  equally  smitten  by  her  charms. 

She  was  then  in  the  transition  period,  when  neither 
child  nor  woman :  she  had  the  wayward  fancies  of  the 
earlier  state,  without  the  self-control  and  knowledge  of  the 
latter.  At  the  same  time  the  womanly  nature  awakening 
within  her  like  the  first  dawning  of  early  Spring,  made  her 
heart  susceptible  to  the  awkward  attentions  of  lier  un- 
known admirer,  who  as  yet  was  shrouded  in  mystery,  and 
therefore  delightful  romance.  One  day  when  returning 
home,  he  following  as  usual  her  distant  and  respectful 
shadow,  some  rude  little  boys  threw  snowballs  at  her. 
The  unknown  turned  upon  them  like  a  lion,  and  as  they 
were  all  much  smaller  than  himself,  soon  put  them  to 
ignominious  flight.  He  then  hastened  to  her  side  and 
asked  if  she  were  hurt.  From  that  hour  he  became  a  hero, 
a  Bayard  in  her  eyes,  and  her  little  feminine  soul,  that 
must  exalt  and  deify  the  creature  of  clay  before  it  can 
5 


94  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

truly  love,  surrendered  at  discretion.  Qualities  most  at- 
tractive to  woman  had  been  displayed — courage  toward 
the  world,  gallantry  and  tenderness  toward  herself.  He 
could  be  a  protector.  What  more  could  her  heart  ask  oi 
seek  ?  She  doted  on  the  unknown.  She  would  paint  his 
handsome  face  in  such  glowing  colors  as  would  make  both 
immortal,  and  in  fact  a  round-faced  youth  with  bloody 
face  and  staring  eyes  in  all  stages  of  artistic  mutilation 
began  to  fill  the  hidden  nooks  of  her  portfolio.  At  times 
the  object  of  her  constant  thought  would  beam  upon  her 
with  one  eye,  she  having  been  interrupted  before  she  could 
put  in  the  other.  In  the  same  way  other  features  would 
be  painfully  lacking,  but  her  loving  fancy  would  fill  them 
out,  and  she  would  gaze  devotedly  on  what  others,  not 
possessed  by  her  strong  illusion,  would  regard  as  a  fit  sub- 
ject for  a  coroner's  inquest. 

But  though  he  remained  in  romantic  mystery  and  main- 
tained his  incognito,  she  was  not  unknown  to  him.  This 
Chicago  youth  had  forgotten  his  boyish  innocence  years 
ago.  He  was  shrewd,  and  had  come  of  a  shrewd  tribe. 
He  was  in  fact  the  eldest  son  of  Deacon  Gudgeon,  a  well- 
to-do  fish-monger  and  green-grocer.  But  his  father,  am- 
bitious in  his  way  as  Mr.  Ludolph  in  his,  had  meant  him 
for  great  things,  and  had  kept  him  out  of  the  stall,  so  that 
Christine,  who  had  often  stopped  with  her  father  at  the 
Deacon's  stand  to  order  fish  and  oysters,  had  never  seen 
him  there  nor  suspected  the  relation.  The  only  daughter 
of  rich  Mr.  Ludolph  was  a  grand  "  catch,"  and  father  and 
son  rejoiced  in  secret,  though  with  fear  and  trembling  over 
the  slate  of  affairs.  It  was  of  course  deemed  best  that  he 
should  remain  unknown  till  Christine  had  committed  her- 
S'l'if  so  far,  or  had  become  so  attached  to  him,  that  she 
could  or  would  not  draw  back.  If  a  secret,  private  mar- 
ri;ige  could  be  brought  about,  they  would  avail  themselves 
of  that,  for  however  it  might  result,  much  could  be  wrung 


DEACON    GUDGEON'S   SON. 


95 


from  Mr.  Ludolph's  pride,  and  some  advantageous  com- 
promise effected.  While  this  mine  was  being  dug  under 
his  feet,  Mr.  Ludolph  thought  of  his  daughter  as  a  little 
school-girl,  who  had  learned  to  conjugate  "  love,"  as  any 
other  verb,  only  from  her  grammar. 

But  the  fever  of  her  first  passion  went  on  with  little  in- 
terruption till  it  reached  the  crisis  of  "  sweet  idolatry." 
For  a  few  weeks  after  her  rescue  from  the  snow-battlers, 
she  could  hardly  have  refused  him  anything.  But  the 
wary  youth  over-reached  himself  in  his  own  shrewdness. 
His  father's  caution  also  held  him  back.  They  must  not 
frighten  tnis  rare  bird  by  too  precipitate  action  till  fairly 
within  the  toils. 

Meantime  Christine  having  loved  blindly  all  her  girlish 
nature  could,  began  to  grow  a  little  critical.  Gradually  it 
dawned  upon  her  that  the  hero  ever  present  to  her  fancy 
was  somewhat  different  from  the  flesh  and  blood  youth  of 
the  street. 

Certain  coarse  ways  and  ungrammatical  expressions 
jarred  upon  her  refined  and  sensitive  nature.  His  mystery 
began  to  grow  suspicious  instead  of  romantic.  In  bitter- 
ness of  heart  she  reproached  herself  for  thus  seeing  spots 
on  the  sun  of  her  existence,  but  so  it  was,  and  these  feel- 
ings soon  tinged  her  manners  with  a  slight  coldness  at  their 
stolen  interviews  to  and  from  school.  This  alarmed  the 
conspirators,  and  they  felt  that  the  time  had  come  for  de- 
cisive action. 

The  next  afternoon  she  saw  her  unknown  admirer  walk- 
ing up  the  street  to  meet  her.  Unconsciously  she  com- 
pared his  swagger  with  the  courtly  bearing  of  her  father, 
and  wondered  at  the  difference.  He  was  pomaded,  pei- 
fumed,  and  dressed  to  a  greater  degree  than  usual,  and  this 
annoyed  her.  Moreover  his  face  wore  ainost  sentimental, 
lugubrious  aspect,  and  she  with  strange  perversity  felt  like 
laughing.     But  she  tried  to  meet  him  with  a  smile,  as  usual. 


jl6  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

In  a  voice  that  he  meant  to  be  deeply  affecting  he  said 
— "Christine,  I'm  agoin'  away — a  far  away  from  these 
scenes  of  joy  and  love." 

To  her  surprise,  no  regret  but  rather  a  sense  of  relief 
fi^  ed  her  heaTt  in  view  of  his  absence — her  faithful  heart 
that  she  so  often  had  promised  would  ever  be  true. 

He  went  on  to  state  that  though  he  had  fine  prospects 
— great  prospects,  stil)  the  world  would  ever  be  "  a  sandy 
sarah,  a  howlen  wilderness,  an  unimproved  prairie,  without 
her.  Would  she  not  marry  him  ? — they  would  enter  Para- 
dise together  ? " 

All  this  might  have  sounded  very  heavenly  and  invit- 
ing three  weeks  ago,  but  she  was  fast  becoming  disen- 
chanted now.  Her  superior  knowledge  of  geography 
made  "  Sandy  Sarah "  too  much  for  her,  and  when  he 
looked  around  to  see  the  effect  of  his  set  speech,  he  found 
her  shaking  with  laughter.  Then  he  reproached  her,  and 
she  laughed  half  hysterically  all  the  more,  for  she  was  ex- 
cited, worried,  and  hardly  knew  what  she  did.  Then  he 
threatened  her — spoke  vaguely  of  her  having  committed 
herself — promised — and  told  her  she  had  gone  too  far  to 
draw  back,  that  she  was  in  his  power,  etc.  At  this  she 
began  to  cry.  Then  he  told  her  if  she  would  only  marry 
him,  it  would  be  all  right.  But  she  cried  all  the  more,  and 
felt  she  would  rather  die  than  marry  him.  Her  excite- 
ment and  emotion  attracted  the  attention  of  passers-by. 
At  last  a  gentleman  stopped  and  asked  what  was  the 
matter. 

"  I  want  to  go  home,"  said  she. 

"  Where  is  your  home  .''  "  '' 

"  No.  —  Wabash  avenue." 

"Why,  my  child,  you're  going  right  away  from  home." 
At  this  she  lookexl  in  quick  alarm  at  her  companion.  The 
unknown,  perplexed,  and  anxious,  felt  that  he  must  do 
sometliing  or  the  game  was  lost,  so  he  said  stoutly— 


DEACON  GUDGEON'S   SON. 


97 


"  She's  my  sister,  I  will  see  her  home  safe." 

The  spell  was^now  broken  utterly.  She  had  caught 
nim  in  a  downright  lie;  and  all  confidence  was  at  once 
gone. 

"  He  is  not  my  brother,"  she  cried.  "  He  is  a  bad  boy, 
and  I  won't  do  what  he  wants  me  to." 

The  gentleman,  who  was  a  father  and  worthy  citizen, 
at  once  comprehended  the  case. 

"  Come  with  me,  my  child,"  he  said ;  "  of  course  he  is 
not  your  brother — one  could  see  that  half  a  block  off.  As^ 
for  you,  young  man,  leave,  or  I'll  put  you  in  charge  of  a 
policeman." 

The  unknown  needed  no  second  warning,  but  slunk 
quickly  around  the  comer. 

Christine  saw  in  great  alarm  that  she  was  in  a  part  of 
the  city  utterly  unknown  to  her,  but  the  gentleman  took  her 
hand,  and  kindly  reassuring  her,  soon  brought  her  to  fa- 
miliar ground,  but  did  not  leave  her  till  she  ran  up  the 
steps  of  her  father's  house.  He  then  gave  a  low  whistle 
of  surprise,  and  said  to  himself, 

"  If  Ludolph  does  not  look  after  his  daughter  as  well 
as  his  business,  he  will  rue  it.  Though  our  acquaintance 
is  slight,  I  think  I  ought  to  tell  him,"  and  a  few  days  after 
he  did,  but  the  facts  came  to  his  knowledge  sooner. 

The  next  day  Christine  was  too  sick  and  worried  to  go 
out.  She  was  also  afraid  to  go,  for  the  vague  threats  she 
had  heard  were  all  the  more  dreadful  because  vague  and 
mysterious. 

Her  father  asked  anxiously  what  was  the  matter,  and 
she  said  "  a  headache,"— she  might  justly  have  added  a 
heartache ;  for  the  change  from  her  ideal  world  of  love  and 
happiness  was  great  and  cruel,  and  one  that  as  yet  she 
could  not  understand.  She  despised  herself,  feared  her 
father,  and  dreaded  her  former  lover  more  than  all.  Ev- 
ery thing  seemed  chaotic  and  full  of  danger.     A  guilty 


98  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

fear  of  exposure  and  some  kind  of  punishment,  haunted 
her,  and  what  astonished  and  perplexed  her  most,  was 
that  her  former  love  had  changed  to  utter  loathing. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

THE      RESULT      OF      FIRST      LOVE. 

The  day  following,  in  order  to  escape  suspicion,  Chris- 
tine went  to  school.  She  saw  the  unknown  hovering  about 
in  the  distance,  but  dropping  her  veil  she  took  a  street-car 
and  escaped  him.  In  the  afternoon  she  joined  herself  to 
a  party  of  girls,  instead  of  coming  home  alone,  as  had 
been  her  custom.  Again  she  saw  him,  but  gave  no  sign 
of  recognition.  Two  days  having  passed  safely,  she  began 
to  breathe  more  freely. 

That  evening,  as  she  and  her  father  sat  in  their  luxu- 
rious sitting-room,  she  was  startled  by  a  sharp  ring  at  the 
door.  The  father  noticed  her  alarm  and  wondered  at  it 
for  a  moment.  But  when  the  girl  announced  "  Deacon 
Gudgeon  and  son  on  business,"  all  anxiety  passed  from 
her  face.  What  had  she  to  do  with  Deacon  Gudgeon  and 
son  ? 

"  r  suppose  he  wants  his  money,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph ; 
"ask  him  if  he  has  brought  his  bill." 

The  girl  soon  returned  with  a  long  bill,  (for  Mr.  Lu- 
dolph was  a  good  liver),  but  every  article  was  charged  at 
only  half  price. 

"  What  does  this  mean  ? "  exclaimed  Mr.  Tudolph. 
"  Old  Gudgeon  is  not  the  man  to  take  off  fifty  per  cent, 
fiom  a  bill  for  nothing,"  and  he  went  down  to  solve  the 
mystery. 

There  was  a  cool,  wary  glitter  in  the  Deacon's  eye,  but 


THE   RESULT   OF   FIRST   LOVE. 


99 


outwardly  he  was  all  smiles  and  graciousness,  and  wanted 
to  shake  hands,  but  Mr.  Ludolph  conveniently  did  not  see 
this.  Everybody  in  the  market  called  him  "  Deacon,"  I:  ut 
Mr.  Ludolph,  in  his  punctilious  pride,  would  not  allow 
himself  even  this  slight  familiarity  toward  one  of  the  fish- 
monger's class,  and  he  called  him  simply  Mr.  Gudgeon 
and  his  manner  to  such  was  ever  as  cool  and  yet  as  smil- 
ing and  bright  as  the  glitter  of  an  icicle. 

"  Mr.  Gudgeon,"  he  said,  in  an  easy  yet  distant  cour- 
tesy, "  there  seems  some  mistake  about  this  bill.  I  am 
charged  but  half  the  usual  price  for  the  provisions  I  have 
had." 

Mr.  Gudgeon  grinned,  shuffled,  and  intimated  in  an 
obscure,  bungling  way,  that,  under  the  present  "  circum- 
stances," he  would  not  expect  to  charge  Mr.  Ludolph  as 
other  customers. 

"Indeed,  sir,  said  Mr.  Ludolph  coldly,  regarding  his 
strangely  acting  guest  as  if  he  had  lost  his  wits,  "  1  know 
of  no  circumstances  that  should  prevent  me  from  paying 
you  a  fair  price  for  what  I  buy.     I  am  abundantly  able." 

"  No  doubt,  no  doubt,  abundantly  able,"  said  the  Dea- 
con with  emphasis,  as  if  relishing  the  fact.  "Well,  well, 
sir,  pay  me  what  you  like.  It's  all  in  the  family — he  !  he ! 
(with  a  constrained  laugh) — as  people  say,  you  know." 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?  "  demanded  Mr.  Ludolph  sternly. 

"  P'raps  she  hasn't  told  you." 

"  Has  your  father  lo^t  his  reason  lately  ? "  asked  Mr. 
Ludolph  in  a  perplexed  tone  of  the  son,  who  was  shuffling 
about  looking  very  uneasy  and  abashed,  now  that  he  was 
in  the  rich  man's  house  he  had  so  longed  to  enter. 

Deacon  Gudgeon  saw  that  he  could  play  the  game  of 
hide-and-seek  no  longer — that  he  must  come  out  boldly. 
But  now,  that  he  was  in  the  presence  of  the  proud  man,  and 
finished  gentleman,  standing  strong  and  secure  in  the 
sanctity  of  his  own  home — the  home  that  he  was  seeking 


lOO  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

to  invade  by  the  vilest  trickery,  and  unblushing  eflrontery, 
even  his  brazen  face  showed  some  confusion,  but  he  made 
a  bold  plunge  into  the  midst  of  things,  resolving  to  reach 
the  crisis  at  once. 

"  IV  not  lost  my  reason,  Mr.  Ludolph,"  he  said.  "  In- 
deed, 1  come  here  to  talk  reason,  to  have  a  just  under- 
Standin'.  You  see  before  you  a  man  and  a  father.  I  have 
a  deep  and  nataral  interest  in  my  offspring  (with  a  wave 
of  his  hand  toward  the  shuffling  youth  who  stood  a  little 
in  the  back-ground,  with  his  hands  in  his  pockets,  making 
most  uneasy  efforts  to  appear  at  ease.  The  "offspring" 
was  undoubtedly  a  "  chip  of  the  old  block.")  It  is  quite 
nataral  that  young  folks,  when  they  git  growed  up,  should 
leave  father  and  mother  and  hum,  and  cleave  to  another. 
It's  also  quite  nataral  that  parents  would  like  to  know  who 
that  other  is.  The  s'lection  of  a  partner  for  life  is  a  sol- 
emn thing,  and  parents  can't  always  approve  of  the  s'lec- 
tion their  offspring  makes.  My  son  "  (with  another  stately 
wave  toward  the  offspring)  "  has  made  his  s'lection,  and 
his  love  is  recippercated.  I  can't  say  that  I  have  any  ob- 
jection to  his  choice — in  fact  I  quite  admire  his  taste. 
Permit  me  to  inform  you  that  your  daughter  has  promised 
to  marry  my  son." 

During  the  oration  from  the  Deacon,  Mr.  Ludolph  had 
turned  all  sorts  of  colors ;  but  he  soon  jumped  to  the 
conclusion  that  it  was  a  barefaced  effort  at  black-mailing.  - 
He  remembered  that  when  the  door-bell  rang  Christine 
had  shown  confusion,  but  when  the  Deacon  and  his  son 
were  announced,  only  indifference;  so  he  said — 

"  You  accursed  fool,  my  daughter  never  saw  your  son." 

"  Call  her,"  said  the  Deacon,  coolly. 

A\'ith  a  heart  full  of  anger  and  disgust,  Mr.  Ludolph 
called  up  the  stair?  in  a  loud,  harsh  voice — 

"Christine,  come  here  a  moment." 

TrembUng,  and  full  of  misgivings,  Christine  obeyed. 


THE  RESULT   OF   FIRST  LOVE.  ic  • 

But  the  moment  she  saw  the  unknown  she  had  so  idol- 
ized, she  covered  her  face  wiih  her  hands  and  tried  to  es- 
cape. But  her  father  seized  her  sternly  and  almost  roughly 
by  the  arm,  and  asked  in  a  tone  he  had  never  used  to  her 
before — 

"  Christine,  what  does  all  this  mean  ?  " 

"  You  see,  you  see,"  squeaked  the  Deacon  exultingly. 

"  Silence !  "  said  Mr.  Ludolph  in  a  voice  of  thunder. 
"  Let  the  girl  speak," — and  thoughts  of  her  mother  sick- 
ened his  heart.  "  Is  she  to  be  the  same  ? "  he  queried 
"  and  has  she  commenced  so  early  ? " 

"  Christine,  do  you  know  this  boy  ?  "  emphasizing  the 
word. 

"  Yes,"  put  in  the  Deacon,  "  don't  yer  know  thlsyoung 
man  ?  "  emphasizing  his  term. 

"  Yes,"  said  Christine  faintly. 

"  Did  you  ever  promise  to  marry  this  boy  1 "  said  her 
father. 

"  No ;  he  wanted  me  to  marry  him  day  before  yester- 
day, and  I  wouldn't." 

Her  father  groaned,  and  she  saw  that  his  face  was 
ashen  pale. 

"  Where  did  you  meet  him  ? "  he  asked  hoarsely. 

"  On  my  way  home  from  school." 

"  How  long  has  this  been  going  on  "i  " 

"  It  is  about  three  months  since  I  first  saw  him,  but  I 
never  knew  who  he  was  till  to-night." 

Her  father  again  groaned.     "  Deceit !  deceit  ?  " 

This  stung  Christine  to  the  quick,  and  she  cried  pas- 
sionately— 

"I  never  told  a  lie,  but  he  did,"  pointing  to  her  quon- 
dam lover,  A\ho  stood  with  trembling  knees,  and  a  face  that 
he  tried  vainly  to  keep  bold.  "  I  know  I  have  acted  like 
a  fool,"  she  continued,  "  and  I  have  suffered  enough  in 
consequence.  But  I  was  young  and  inexperienced,  and 
5* 


J02  BARRIERS   BURNED  AWAY. 

did  not  know  what  I  was  doing.  It  all  seems  like  a  silly, 
h-^rrid  dream,  but  now  that  it  is  done  I  won't  lie  about  it." 
Ai.d  she  told  the  whole  story  without  any  concealment, 
Htr  father  watched  her  with  a  scrutiny  that  pierced  her 
very  soul.  He  then  cross-questioned  her  more  searchingly 
than  the  keenest  lawyer,  for  more  than  life — his  ambition 
and  honor  were  at  stake.  With  his  thorough  knowledge 
of  character  and  the  world,  he  saw  that  he  had  obtained 
from  her  the  whole  truth,  and  at  the  same  time  he  clearly 
detected  the  scheme  of  the  Gudgeons.  As  he  turned  to 
them,  the  Deacon  was  fairly  startled,  so  terrible  was  his 
expression.  They  saw  that  in  Mr.  Ludolph  they  had 
caught  a  tartar. 

"  There  is  the  door,"  he  said  in  the  deep  suppressed 
voice  of  passion. 

^rhe  young  man  with  a  frightened  look,  started,  but 
the  Deacon  stood  his  ground. 

"  Look  ahere,  Mr.  Ludolph,  not  so  fast.  My  son's 
blighted  'fections  require  rapparition.  You  can't  expect 
this  matter  to  blow  over,"  he  added  more  plainly,  "  without 
some  good  reason." 

"  How  much  do  you  mean  by  a  good  reason  ?  "  said 
Mr.  Ludolph  warily. 

"  You're  a  rich  man  ;  you  couldn't  afford  a  scandal  like 
this  to  come  out ;  I  mean  a  good  round  sum." 

"  I  perceive  you  mean  business,  Mr.  Gudgeon,"  said 
Mr.  Ludolph  ;  "  let  us  proceed  in  a  business-like  way," 
and  he  stepped  to  the  door  and  called  two  of  his  servants, 
an  intelligent  German  man  and  an  English  woman. 

AVhen  they  appeared  Mr.  Ludolph  continued  in  an  affa- 
ble matter-of-fact  tone.  "  Now,  Mr.  Gudgeon,  let  us  settle 
this  little  atlair  between  us,  as  I  have  other  things  on  hand 
this  evening  that  re(jLiire  my  attention.  Just  name  the 
sum  before  these  witnesses  that  v/ill  satisfy  your  claim,  and 
we  can  soon  end  this  transaction." 


THE  RESULT   OF  FIRST   LOVE. 


103 


"  The  Deacon's  eyes  glittered  avariciously,  and  he  be- 
lieved he  was  having  everything  his  own  way.  But  he 
hesitated,  not  daring"  to  name  the  sum  he  longed  to. 

"  Come,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph  impatiently,  "  do  not  be 
afraid  to  speak  out." 

"  Well,"  said  the  Deacon,  brassily,  "  I'll  settle  with  yer 
for  ten  thousand  dollars."  At  the  same  time  he  was  evi- 
dently frightened  at  the  sum  he  had  named. 

"  All  right,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph  coolly,  and  he  stepped 
to  a  small  secretary  and  wrote  the  following :  "  On  the  pay- 
ment of  ten  thousand  dollars  from  Mr.  Ludolph  I  will  give 
him  a  receipt  in  full  for  my  claim  against  him.  Is  that 
satisfactory  ?  "  asked  he. 

"  O  cartainly,  cartainly,"  said  the  exultant  Deacon  ; 
"  but  you'd  hardly  expect  a  man  and  father  to  do  it  for 
less,  in  view  of  such  carcumstances  as-—" 

"  No  words,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph  firmly. 

"  O,  I  see,  I  understand ;  we'll  setde  quietly,"  said  the 
Deacon  with  a  significant  wink. 

"That  is  the  better  way,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph  coolly. 
"  Just  please  sign  that  paper,  so  that  I  can  be  sure  that 
there  will  be  no  further  trouble." 

The  Deacon  at  once  scrawled  his  name.  Mr.  Ludolph 
had  his  servants  witness  the  signature,  then  dismissed  the 
woman. 

He  then  sat  down  at  his  secretary  again,  wrote  a  fev» 
lines,  and  said  to  his  man, — 

"  Here,  Brandt,  take  this  note  to  police  station  No.  — , 
and  give  it  to  officer  Brown." 

"What  do  you  mean.?"  asked  the  Deacon  in  sudden 
alarm. 

"  I  mean  to  lodge  you  and  your  son  in  jail,"  said  Mr. 
Ludolph  coolly.  "  You  have  both  taken  part  in  a  conspir- 
acy to  blackmail.  You  have  given  me  written  and  legal 
proof" 


I04  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY, 

The  Deacon  turned  pale,  and  his  son  began  to  whine 
and  snuffle.  Christine  had  tried  to  escape  from  a  scene 
that  was  painful  aad  sickening  beyond  words,  but  her 
father  sternly  commanded  her  to  remain.  He  meant  thai 
she  should  receive  an  impression  that  would  last. 

"  You  cannot  afford  to  have  this  come  out,"  snarled 
the  Deacon  ;  "  it  will  make  your  daughter  the  town  talk." 

"  I  can  stand  it  if  yqji  can,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph  quietly. 

"O  father,"  pleaded  Christine,  "give  him  anything 
rather  than  subject  me  to  this  mortification." 

"  You  have  subjected  yourself  to  it,"  said  her  father. 
"  Romantic,  gushing  girls  that  bestow  their  affections  in 
the  streets  on  fishmonger's  sons,  must  expect  the  natural 
consequences. 

His  tone  was  so  cold  and  remorseless  that  all  saw  that 
it  was  useless  to  oppose  his  iron  will.  The  Deacon,  who 
was  a  large,  powerful  man,  felt  a  strong  impulse  in  his 
desperation,  to  try  force  in  order  to  recover  from  Mr.  Lu- 
dolph the  proof  of  his  guilt,  but  his  wary  adversary  coolly 
drew  a  revolver  and  said, 

"  That  will  not  answer,  Mr.  Gudgeon." 

Christine  was  almost  ready  to  faint,  and  the  teeth  of 
her  former  hero  were  fairly  chattering  with  fright.  But  the 
Deacon  now  came  out  in  his  worst  light.  He  belonged 
to  the  reptile  class  of  humanity  that  can  crawl  anywhere 
to  do  anything  that  selfishness  prompts.  He  had  sneaked 
into  a  Christian  church,  and  pulled  over  his  black  life  the 
sacred  garb  of  religion.  -By  arts  and  wire-pulling  he  came 
to  be  elected  an  officer,  and  then  he  made  his  deaconship 
as  prominent  in  the  market  as  his  sign  over  the  fish-stall. 
But  he  appreciated  Christian  faith,  and  was  as  true  to  il 
as  Judas  Iscariot.  But  now  fearing  the  loss  of  his  eccle- 
siastical honors,  and  also  hoping  to  move  Mr.  Ludolph, 
he  whined, 

"  As  a  mar  and  a  father  devoted  to   his   offspring,  I 


THE  RESULT   OF   FIRST  LOVE. 


105 


may  have  gone  too  far  in  this  matter.  But  when  you  come 
to  know  that  I  am  a  member  of  the  church,  in  fact  one  of 
the  pillars,  I  know  that  you  wont  bring  a  cause  of  reproach 
and  stumbling." 

"Maik  that,  Christine,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph ;  "your 
would-be  father-in-law  is  a  pillar  in  the  church.  It  must 
be  a  queer  institution  that  requires  such  pillars  to  uphold 
it,"  he  added  with  a  sneering  laugh. 

"  O  please  let  us  off  this  time,  and  we  wont  trouble  you 
no  more,"  pleaded  father  and  son  in  doleful  chorus. 

Mr.  Ludolph  thought  a  moment.  If  he  prosecuied  the 
Deacon  and  his  son,  they  having  buffered  all  they  could, 
would  become  bitter  enemies,  bent  on  revenge.  If  he  let 
them  go,  but  held  the  paper  in  terrorem  over  them,  they 
would  have  the  strongest  motive  possible  to  keep  still  and 
let  him  alone.     He  therefore  said, 

"  Not  because  you  are  a  'pillar,'  nor  because  you  do 
not  richly  deserve  punishment,  do  I  let  you  off,  but  because 
I  have  no  time  to  willingly  waste  on  men  of  your  stripe. 
Sportsmen  do  not  shoot  vermin  unless  they  must  to  get  rid 
of  them.  But  I  warn  you  plainly  that  if  either  you  or  your 
son  tr.ouble  me  or  my  daughter  again,  I  will  Have  you 
arrested,  and  punished  to  the  extent  of  the  law,  if  it  take 
all  and  more  than  the  preposterous  sum  you  named.  Now 
begone." 

The  Deacon  and  his  son  slunk  off  like  whipped  curs. 

Mr.  Ludolph  then  turned  to  his  daughter,  and  said 
icily. 

"  This  time  I  have  saved  you  from  disgrace  and  shame. 
The  next  time  you  are  guilty  of  such  a  folly,  you  shall 
abide  the  consequences.  Go  to  your  room,  think  over 
this  scene,  and  look  down  into  this  pit  of  all  uncleanness 
into  which  you  so  nearly  fell." 

With  every  fibre  in  her  body  tingling  with  shame  and 
self-disgust,  Christine  crept  away  to  the  welcome  solitude 


Io6  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY, 

of  her  own  room.  She  put  out  the  light  so  that  she  might 
not  even  see  her  own  face  in  the  mirror. 

Mr.  Ludblph  told  the  detective  when  he  came  that  on 
farther  investigation  he  had  concluded  not  to  ask  the 
arrest  of  a  certain  party,  and  gave  the  man  ten  dollars  for 
his  trouble,  and  so  the  matter  ended.  From  that  time 
forth  the  Gudgeons  sailed  as  wide  of  Mr.  Ludolph  a.s 
timorous  mariners  of  the  maelstrom. 

But  Christine  had  received  a  lesson  she  could  never 
forget.  Every  feature  in  the  humbling  scene  seemed 
Durned  into  her  very  soul  as  with  caustic. 

For  some  weeks  after  the  events  above  described  Mr. 
Ludolph  treated  his  daughter  with  cold  distrust.  Chris- 
tine saw  that  his  confidence  in  her  was  gone.  She  was 
very  unhappy.  She  fairly  turned  sick  when  she  thought 
of  the  past.  The  words  love  and  romance,  were  nauseat- 
ing. She  had  lived  in  the  world  of  romance  and  mystery; 
she  had  loved  all  that  her  girlish  nature  could,  and  how 
had  it  ended  ?  However  wrongly  and  unjustly,  she 
had,  by  the  inevitable  laws  of  association,  connected 
these  words  with  the  fishmonger  and  son  ;  and  within  a 
week  after  her  miserable  experience  she  became  as  utter  an 
unbeliever  in  human  love  and  happiness  flowing  from  it, 
as  her  father  had  taught  her  to  be  in  God  and  the  joy  of 
believing.  Though  seemingly  a  fair  young  girl,  her  father 
had  made  her  worse  than  a  pagan.  She  believed  in  noth- 
ing save  art  and  her  father's  wisdom.  He  seemed  to  em- 
body the  culture  and  worldly  philosophy  that  now  became, 
in  her  judgment,  the  only  things  worth  living  for.  To 
gain  his  confidence  became  her  great  desire.  But  this 
had  received  a  severe  shock.  Mr.  Ludolph  lost  all  faiih  in 
everything  sa\e  money  and  his  own  will.  Religion  was  to 
him  a  trross  superstition,  with  which  he  associated  Pat 
Murjihy's  priest  ami  Deacon  Gudgeon — woman's  virtue 
and  truth,  poetic  fictions. 


THE   RESULT   OF   FIRST   LOVE. 


107 


He  watched  Christine  narrowly,  and  said  just  enough 
CO  draw  out  the  woikings  of  her  mind.  He  then  decided 
to  tell  his  plan  for  life,  and  give  her  strong  additional 
motives  for  doing  his  will.  The  picture  he  portrayed  of 
the  ^uture,  dazzled  her  proud,  ambitious  spirit,  and  opened 
to  her  fancy  what  then  seemed  the  only  path  of  happiness. 
She  entered  into  his  projects  with  honest  enthusiasm,  and 
bound  herself  by  the  most  solemn  promises  to  aid  in 
carrying  them  out.  But  in  bitterness  he  remembered  one 
who  had  promised  with  seeming  enthusiasm  before,  and 
distrusted  and  watched  his  daughter  with  lynx-eyed  vigi- 
lance. 

But  gradually  he  began  to  believe  in  her  somewhat,  as 
he  saw  her  looking  foward  with  increasing  eagerness  to 
the  heaven  of  German  fashionable  life,  wherein  she,  rich, 
admired,  allied  by  marriage  to  some  powerful  noble  fami- 
ly, should  shine  a  queen  in  the  world  of  art. 

"  I  have  joined  her  selfishness  to  mine,"  he  said,  rubbing 
his  hands  in  self-gratulation.  "  I  have  blended  our  ambi- 
tions and  sources  of  hope  and  enjoyment,  and  that  is 
better  than  all  her  promises." 

At  the  time  that  Dennis  saw  first  the  face  that  was  so 
beautiful  and  yet  so  married  by  pride  and  selfishness,  Chris- 
tine was  about  eighteen,  and  yet  as  mature  in  some  respects 
as  a  woman  of  thirty.  She  had  the  perfect  self-possession 
that  familiarity  with  the  best  society  gives.  Mr.  Ludolph 
was  too  shrewd  to  seek  safety  in  seclusion.  He  went  with 
his  daughter  into  the  highest  circles  of  the  city,  and  Chris- 
tine had  crowds  of  admirers  and  many  offers.  All-  this  she 
enjoyed,  but  took  coolly  as  her  right,  as  a  Greek  goddess 
might  the  incense  that  rose  in  her  temple.  She  was  too 
proud  and  refined  to  flirt  in  the  ordinary  sense  of  the 
word,  and  no  one  could  complain  that  she  gave  much  en- 
couragment.  But  this  was  all  the  more  stimulating  to  the 
Chicago  youth,  and  each  one  believed  with  confidence  in 


lo8  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

his  peculiar  attractions,  that  he  might  succeed  where  all 
others  had  failed.  They  were  unaware  that  they  had  a 
rival  in  some  as  yet  unknown  German  nobleman.  At  last 
it  passed 'into  a  proverb  that  the  beautiful  and  brilliant 
girl  who  was  so  free  and  courtly  in  society,  was  as  cold 
and  unsusceptible  as  one  of  her  father's  slatues. 

Thus  it  would  seem  that  when  circumstances  brought 
the  threads  of  these  two  lives  near  each  other,  that  of 
Dennis  and  Christine,  the  most  impassable  barriers  rose 
betweea  them,  and  that  the  threads  could  never  be  woven 
together,  nor  the  lives  blended. 

She  was  the  daughter  of  the  wealthy,  aristocratic  Mr. 
Ludolph.  He  was  her  father's  porter.  Next  to  the  love 
of  art,  pride  and  w.orldly  ambition  were  her  strongest 
characteristics.  She  was  an  unbeliever  in  God  and  relig- 
ion, not  from  conviction,  but  from  training.  She  knew 
very  little  about  either,  and  what  Hght  she  had  came  to 
her  through  false  mediums,  murky  and  discolored. 

She  did  not  even  believe  in  that  which  in  many  young 
hearts  is  religion's  shadow,  love  and  romance.  Her  fath- 
er did  not  take  a  more  worldly  and  practical  view  of  life, 
than  she. 

In  marked  contrast-  we  have  seen  the  character  of 
Dennis  Fleet,  drawing  its  inspiration  from  such  different 
sources. 

Could  two  human  beings  be  more  widely  separated — 
separated  in  that  which  divides  more  surely  than  continents 
and  seas  ? 

There  was  but  one  point  of  contact — their  mutual  love 
of  art. 

But  if  Dennis  could  have  seen  her  warped,  deformed 
moral  nature,  as  clearly  as  her  beautiful  face  and  form,  he 
would  have  shrunk  from  her  almost  in  loathing.  But  while 
recoi^nizing  defects,  he  shared  the  common  delusion,  that 
the  lovely  oil-, vard  form  and  face  must  enshrine  much  that 


VERY   COLD. 


109 


was  noble  and  ready  to  blossom  into  good,  if  the  right  mo- 
tives could  be  presented. 

As  for  Christine,  she  had  one  chance  for  life,  one 
chance  for  heaven.  She  was  young.  Her  nature  had  not 
£o  hardened  and  crystallized  in  evil  as  to  be  beyond  new 
and  happier  influences. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

VERY   COLD. 

When  Dennis  entered  Mr.  Ludolph's  store,  Christme 
was  absent  on  a  visit  to  New  York,  and  on  her  return,  re- 
sumed her  old  routine.  At  this  time  she  and  her  father 
were  occupying  a  suite  of  rooms  at  a  fashionable  hotel. 
Her  school-days  were  over,  Mr.  Ludolph  preferring  to 
complete  her  education  himself,  in  accordance  with  his 
peculiar  views  and  tastes.  She  was  just  passing  into  her 
nineteenth  year,  and  looked  out  upon  the  world  from  the 
vantage  points  of  health,  beauty,  wealth,  accomplishments 
of  the  highest  order,  and  the  best  social  standing.  Assur- 
ance of  a  long  and  brilliant  career  possessed  her  mind, 
while  pride  and  beauty  were  like  a  coronet  upon  her  brow. 
She  was  the  world's  ideal  of  a  queen. 

And  yet  she  was  not  truly  happy.  There  was  ever  a 
vague  sense  of  unrest  and  dissatisfaction  at  heart.  She 
saw  that  her  father  was  proud  and  ambitious  in  regard  to 
her,  but  instinctively  felt  that  he  neither  loved  nor  trusted 
her  to  any  great  extent.  She  seemed  living  in  a  palace  of 
ice  and  at  times  felt  that  she  was  turning  into  ice  herself; 
but  her  very  humanity  and  womanhood,  deadened  and 
warped  though  they  were,  cried  out  against  the  cold  of  a  life 
without  God  or  love.     In  the  depths  of  her  soul  she  felt 


no  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAV. 

that  something  was  wrong,  but  what,  she  could  not  under 
stand.  It  seemed  that  she  had  everything  that  heart  could 
wish,  and  that  she.  ought  to  be  satisfied. 

She  at  last  concluded  that  her  restlessness  was  the 
prompting  of  a  lofty  ambition,  and  if  she  chose  she  could 
win  world-wide  celebrity  as  an  artist.  This,  with  the  whole 
force  of  her  strong  nature,  she  had  determined  to  do,  and 
for  over  two  years  had  worked  with  an  energy  akin  to  en- 
thusiasm. She  had  resolved  that  painting  should  be  the 
solid  structure  of  her  success,  and  music  its  ornament. 

Nor  were  her  dreams  altogether  chimerical,  for  she  had 
remarkable  talent  in  her  chosen  field  of  effort,  and  had  been 
taught  to  use  the  brush  and  pencil  from  a  child.  She  could 
imitate  with  skill  and  taste,  and  express  with  great  accuracy 
the  musical  thought  of  the  composer.  But  she  could  not 
invent  and  create  new  effects,  and  this  had  already  begun 
o  trouble  her.  Bnt  she  worked  hard  and  patiently,  de- 
.ermined  to  succeed.  So  great  had  been  her  application, 
that  her  father  saw  the  need  of  rest  and  change,  and  there- 
fore her  visit  to  New  York. 

She  had  now  returned  strengthened,  and  eager  for  her 
former  studies,  and  resumed  them  with  tenfold  zest. 

The  plan  of  re-arranging  the  store  on  artistic  principles, 
daily  grew  in  favor  with  her.  It  was  just  the  exercise  of 
taste  she  delighted  in,  and  she  hoped  some  day  to  indulge 
it  on  palace  walls  that  would  be  her  own.  Her  -father's 
pride  caused  him  to  hesitate  for  some  time,  but  she  said — 

"  Why,  Chicago  is  not  our  home  ;  we  shall  soon  be 
thousands  of  miles  away.  You  know  how  little  we  really 
care  for  the  opinions  of  people  here:  it  is  only  our  own 
pride  and  opinion  that  we  need  consult.  I  see  nothing 
lowering  or  unfeminine  in  the  work.  I  shall  scarcely  touch 
a  thing  nnself,  merely  direct ;  for  surely  among  all  in  your 
employ  there  must  be  one  or  two  pairs  of  hands  not  so  ut- 
terly awkward  but  that  they  can  follow  plain  instructions. 


VERY   COLD.  Hf 

• 

My  taste  shall  do  it  all.  AVe  are  both  eailj'  risers,  and  the 
whole  change  can  be  made  before  the  store  is  opened. 
Moieover,"  she  added  (with  an  expression  indicating  that 
she  would  have  little  difficulty  in  ruling  her  future  German 
castle,  and  its  lord  also),  "  this  is  an  affair  of  our  own. 
Those  you  employ  ought  to  understand  by  this  time  that  it 
is  neither  wise  nor  safe  to  talk  our  business  outside." 

After  a  moment's  thought  she  concluded — 

"  I  really  think  that  the  proper  arrangement  of  every 
thing  in  the  store  as  to  light,  display,  and  effect,  so  that 
people  of  taste  will  be  pleased  when  they  enter,  would  add 
thousands  of  dollars  to  your  sales,  and  this  rigid  system 
of  old  Schwartz's,  which  annoys  us  both  beyond  endur- 
ance, will  be  broken  up. 

Won  over  by  arguments  that  accorded  with  his  inch- 
nations,  Mr.  Ludolph  gave  his  daughter  permission  to 
carry  out  the  plan  in  her  own  way. 

She  usually  accompanied  her  father  to  the  store  in  the 
morning.  He,  after  a  brief  glance  around,  would  go  to 
his  private  office  and  attend  to  correspondence.  She  would 
do  whatever  her  mood  prompted.  Sometimes  she  would 
sit  down  for  a  half  hour  before  one  picture ;  again  she 
would  examine  most  critically  a  statue,  or  a  statuette. 
Whenever  new  music  was  received,  she  looked  it  over  anc' 
carried  off  such  pieces  as  pleased  her  fancy. 

She  evidently  was  a  privileged  character,  and  no  one 
save  her  father  exercised  the  slightest  control  over  her 
movements.  She  treated  all  the  clerks,  save  old  Schwartz, 
as  if  they  were  animated  machines  ;  and  by  a  quiet  order, 
as  if  she  had  touched  a  spring,  would  set  tUem  in  motion 
to  do  her  bidding.  The  young  men  in  the  store  were  all 
of  German  descent,  and  rather  heavy  and  undemonstra- 
tive, Mr.  Schwartz's  system  of  order  and  repression  had 
pretty  thoroughly  quenched  them.  They  were  educated  to 
the   niches  they  filled,  and  seemed  to  have   no   thqught 


112  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWA\. 

beyond  ;  therefore  they  were  all  unruffled  at  Miss  Lu 
dolph's  air  of  absolute  sovereignty.  Mr  Schwartz  was  as 
obsequious  as  the  rest,  but  as  second  to  her  father  in 
power,  was  permitted  some  slight  familiarity.  In  fact  this 
heavy,  stolid  prime  minister  both  amused  and  annoyed 
her,  and  she  treated  him  much  as  a  child  might  an  ele- 
phant— at  times  giving  him  the  sugar  plum  of  a  compli- 
ment, and  oftener  pricking  him  with  the  pin  of  some 
caustic  remark.  To  him  she  was  the  perfection  of 
womankind — her  reserved,  dispassionate  manner,  her 
steady,  unwearied  prosecution  of  a  purpose,  being  just 
the  qualities  that  he  most  honored;  and  he  worshipped 
her  reverently  at  a  distance  as  an  old  astrologer  might 
some  particularly  bright  fixed  star.  No  whisking  comets 
or  changing  satellites  for  old  Schwartz. 

As  for  Dennis,  she  treated  him  as  she  probably  had 
Pat  Murphy,  and  for  several  days  had  no  occasion  to  no- 
tice him  at  all.  In  fact  he  kept  out  of  her  way,  choosing 
at  first  to  observe  rather  than  be  observed.  She  became 
an  artistic  study  to  him,  for  her  every  movement  was 
grace  itself  with  one  exception ;  there  was  no  softness 
or  gentleness  in  her  manner.  Her  face  fascinated  him 
by  its  beauty,  though  its  expression  troubled  him.  It 
was  so  unlike  his  mother's,  so  unlike  what  he  felt  a  wo- 
man's ought  to  be.  But  her  eager  interest  in  that  which 
was  becoming  so  dear  to  him — art,  would  have  covered  a 
multitude  of  sins  in  his  eyes,  and  with  a  heart  abounding 
in  faith  and  hope,  not  yet  diminished  by  hard  experience, 
he  believed  that  the  undeveloped  angel  existed  within  her. 
But  he  remembered  her  frown  when  she  first  noticed  him 
looking  at  her ;  the  shrewd  Yankee  youth  saw  that  her 
pride  would  not  brook  even  a  curious  glance.  But  while 
he  kept  at  a  most  respectful  distance  he  felt  that  there 
was  no  such  a  wide  gulf  between  them  as  she  imagined. 
By  birth  and  education  he  was  as  truly  entitled  to  her  ao 


VERY  COLD. 


'^3 


quaintance  as  the  young  men  who  sometimes  came  into 
the  store  with  her  and  whom  she  met  in  society.  Position 
and  wealth  were  alone  wanting,  and  in  spite  of  his  hard 
experience  and  lowly  work  he  felt  that  there  mi'st  be  some 
way  for  him,  as  for  others,  to  win  these. 

He  longed  for  the  society  of  ladies,  as  every  right- 
feeling  young  man  does,  and  to  one  of  his  nature  the 
grace  and  beauty  of  woman  was  peculiarly  attractive.  If 
before  she  came,  the  lovely  faces  of  the  pictures  had  filled 
the  place  with  a  sort  of  witchery,  and  created  about  him 
an  atmosphere  in  which  his  artist-soul  was  awakening  into 
life  and  growth,  how  much  more  would  it*be  true  of  this 
living  vision  of  beauty  that  glided  in  and  out  every  day. 

"  She  does  not  notice  me,"  he  at  first  said  to  him- 
self, any  more  than  do  these  lovely  shadows  upon  the 
canvas.  But  what  need  I  care  ?  I  can  study  both  them 
and  her,  and  thus  educate  my  eye,  and  I  hope  my  hand, 
to  imitate  and  perhaps  surpass  their  perfections,  in  time." 

But  this  cool  philosophic  mood  did  not  last  very  long. 
It  might  answer  very  well  in  regard  to  the  pictures  on  the 
walls,  but  there  was  a  magnetism  about  this  living  breath- 
ing woman  that  soon  caused  him  to  long  for  the  privilege 
of  being  near  her  and  speaking  to  her  of  that  subject 
that  interested  them  both  so  deeply.  Though  he  had 
never  seen  any  of  her  paintings  to  know  them,  he  soon 
saw  that  she  was  no  novice  in  art,  and  looked  at  every- 
thing with  the  eye  of  a  connoisseur.  In  reverie  he  had 
many  a  spirited  conversation  with  her,  and  trusted  that 
some  d'ay  his  dreams  would  become  real.  He  had  the 
romantic  hope  that  if  she  should  discover  his  taste  and 
strong  love  of  art  she  might  at  first  bestow  upon  him  a 
patronizing  interest  which  woiild  gradually  grow  into 
respect  and  acknowledgeed  equality. 


II A  BARRIERS  BURNED   AWAY 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

SHE     SPEAKS     TO     HIM. 

After  the  plan  for  the  rearrangement  of  the  store  had 
been  determined  upon,  Miss  Ludolph  commenced  study- 
ing its  topogra^y.  She  went  regularly  through  the  build- 
ing examining  closely  every  part  and  space,  sometimes 
sketching  a  few  outlines  in  a  little  gilt  book.  It  would 
seem  thiat  she  was  seeking  by  her  taste  to  make  the  show 
rooms  pictures  in  themselves,  wherein  each  part  should 
blend  harmoniously,  and  create  one  beautiful  effect.  Den- 
nis saw  what  was  coming.  The  carrying  out  the  plan  he 
had  heard  discussed,  and  he  wished  with  intense  longing 
that  he  might  be  her  assistant.  But  she  would  as  soon  have 
thought  of  sending  for  Pat  Murphy.  She  intended  to 
select  one  of  the  older  clerks  to  aid  her.  Still  Dennis 
hoped  that  by  some  strange  and  happy  turn  of  fortune, 
part  of  this  work  might  fall  to  him. 

Every  spare  moment  of  early  morning  and  evening  he 
spent  in  sketching  and  studying,  but  he  sadly  felt  the  need 
of  instruction  and  money  to  buy  materials.  He  was  mere- 
ly groping  his  way  as  best  he  might,  and  he  felt  that  Miss 
Ludolph  could  teach  him  so  much  if  she  would  only  con- 
descend to  the  task.  He  was  willing  to  be  a  very  humble 
learner  at  first.  If  in  some  way  he  could  only  make  known 
his  willingness  to  pick  up  the  crumbs  of  knowledge  that 
she  mi^hi  be  willing  out  of  kindness  to  scatter  iij  his  way, 
he  might  expect  something  from  ordinary  good  nature. 

But  a  week  or  two  passed  without  his  receiving   so 


SHE  SPEAKS  TO  HIM.  I15 

much  as  a  glance  from  those  cold  blue  eyes  that  res. eel  so 
critically  on  all  that  passed  before  them ;  and  on  an  un- 
lucky day  in  March  all  hope  of  any  help  from  her,  van- 
ished. 

Under  the  influence  of  Spring  the  streets  were  again 
becoming  muddy  and  wet,  and  his  duty  as  boot-black  in- 
creased daily.  He  had  arranged  to  perform  this  menial 
task  in  a  remote  corner  of  the  store,  as  much  out  of  sight 
as  possible.  The  duty  had  become  still  more  disagreeable 
since  the  young  lady  haunted  the  place,  for  he  feared  she 
would  learn  to  associate  him  only  with  the  dust  and  black- 
ening brush. 

Just  behind  where  he  usually  stood,  a  good  picture  had 
been  hung,  under  Mr.  Schwartz's  system,  simply  because 
it  accurately  fitted  the  space.  It  was  in  wretched  light, 
and  could  never  be  seen  or  appreciated  there.  Miss  Lu- 
dolph  in  her  investigations  and  plannings  discovered  this 
at  a  time  most  unfortunate  for  poor  Dennis.  Whilst  pol- 
ishing away  one  morning  on  the  huge  jumble  of  leather 
that  inclosed  Mr.  Schwartz's  broad  understanding,  he  sud- 
denly became  conscious  that  she  was  approaching.  It 
seemed  that  she  was  looking  directly  at  him,  and  was 
about  to  speak.  His  heart  thumped  like  a  trip-hammer, 
his  cheeks  burned,  and  blur  came  over  his  eyes,  for  he  was 
diffident  in  ladies'  presence.  Therefore  he  stood  before 
her  the  picture  of  confusion,  with  the  big  boot  poised  in 
one  hand,  and  the  polishing  brush  in  the  other.  With  the 
instincts  of  a  gentleman,  however,  he  made  an  awkward 
bow,  feeling,  though,  that  under  the  circumstances,  his 
politeness  could  only  appear  ridiculous.  And  he  was  right. 
It  was  evident  from  the  young  lady's  face,  that  her  keen 
perception  of  the  ridiculous  was  thoroughly  aroused.  But 
for  the  sake  of  her  own  dignity  (she  cared  not  a  jot  for 
him),  she  bit  her  lip  to  control  her  desire  to  laugh  in  his 
face,  and  said  rather  sharply — 


Il6  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

"  Will  you  stand  out  of  my  way  ?  " 

She  had  spoken  to  hitn. 

He  was  so  mortified  and  confused  that  in  his  effort  to 
obey,  he  partially  fell  over  a  bronze  sheep,  designed  to 
ornament  some  pastoral  scene,  and  the  heel  of  Mr. 
Schwartz's  heavy  boot  came  down  with  a  thump  that  made 
everything  ring.  There  was  a  titter  from  some  of  the 
clerks.  Mr.  Ludoph,  who  was  following  his  daughter,  ex- 
claimed, 

"  What's  the  matter,  Fleet  ?  You  seem  rather  unsteady, 
this  morning,  for  a  church  member." 

For  a  moment  he  had  the  general  appearance  usually 
ascribed  to  his  unlucky  stumbling-block.  But  by  a  strong 
effort  he  recovered  himself  Deigning  no  reply,  he  set  his 
teeth,  compressed  his  lips,  picked  up  the  boot,  and  pol- 
ished away  as  before,  trying  to  look  and  feel  regardless  of 
all  the  world.  In  fact  he  looked  as  proud  as  she  ever  had. 
But  for  the  time  not  noticing  him,  she  said  to  her  father — 

"  Here  is  a  specimen.  Look  where  this  picture  is  hung. 
In  boot-black  corner  I  should  term  it.  It  would  not  sell 
here  in  a  thousand  years,  for  what  little  light  there  is  would 
be  obscured  much  of  the  time  by  somebody's  big  boots 
and  the  artist  in  charge.  It  has  evidently  been  placed 
here  in  view  of  one  principle  alone — dimension  ;  its  length 
and  breadth  according  with  the  space  in  ihe  corner.  You 
will  see  what  a  change  I  will  bring  about  in  a  month  or 
two,  after  my  plans  are  matured,"  and  then  strolled  to  an- 
other part  of  the  store.  But  before  leaving.  Miss  Ludolph 
happened  to  glance  at  Dennis's  face,  and  was  much  struck 
by  its  expression.  Surely  Pat  Murphy  never  would  oi 
could  look  like  that.  For  the  first  time  the  thought  enter 
ed  her  mind  that  Dennis  might  be  of  a  different  clay  an<3 
character  from  Pat.  But  the  next  moment  his  expression 
of  pride  and  offended  dignity  in  such  close  juxtaposition  to 
the  big  boot  he  was  twirling  almost  savagely  around,  again 


SHE   SPEAKS  TO   HIM. 


»'7 


appealed  to  her  sense  of  the  ludicrous,  and  she  turned 
away  with  abroad  smile.  Dennis,  looking  up,  saw  the 
smile  and  guessed  the  cause ;  and  when,  a  moment  after, 
Mr.  Schwartz  appeared,  asking  in  his  loud,  blunt  way,- 

"  My  boots  ready  ? " 

He  felt  like  flinging  both  at  his  head,  and  leaving  the 
store  forever.  Handing  them  to  him  without  a  word,  he 
hastened  up-stairs,  for  he  felt  that  he  must  be  alone. 

At  first  his  impulse  was  strong  to  rebel,  to  assert  that 
by  birth  and  education  he  was  a  gentleman,  and  must  be 
treated  as  such,  or  he  would  go  elsewhere.  But  as  the 
tumult  in  his  mind  calmed,  the  case  became  as  clear  to  him 
as  a  sum  in  addition.  He  had  voluntarily  taken  Pat  Mur- 
phy's place,  and  why  should  he  complain  at  Pat's  treat- 
ment. He  had  pledged  his  word  that  there  should  be  no 
trouble  from  his  being  above  his  business,  and  he  resolved 
to  keep  his  word  till  Providence  gave  him  better  work  to 
do.  Then  he  remembered  that  the  hands  of  his  Divine 
Lord  and  Master  had  done  as  humble  work  as  his,  and 
was  ashamed  of  his  pride.  He  bathed  his  hot  face  in 
cool  water,  breathed  a  brief  prayer  for  strength  and  pa- 
tience, and  went  back  to  his  tasks  strong  and  calm. 
6 


n8  BARRIERS   BURNED   A  WAV 


CHAPTER  XVII.  ^ 

PROMOTED. 

Late  in  the  afternoon  of  the  same  day  (which  was  Sat- 
urday), as  Mr.  Ludolph  was  passing  out  of  the  store  on 
his  way  home,  he  noticed  the  table  that  he  had  arranged 
artistically  some  little  time  before,  as  a  lesson  to  his  clerks. 
Gradually  it  had  fallen  back  into  its  old  straight  lines  and 
rigid  appearance.     He  seemed  greatly  annoyed. 

"  What  is  the  use  of  re-arranging  the  store,"  he  mut- 
tered. "  They  will  have  it  all  back  again  on  the  general 
principle  of  a  ramrod,  in  a  little  while.  But  we  have  put 
our  hands  to  this  work,  and  it  shall  be  carried  through 
even  if  I  discharge  half  of  these  wooden-heads." 

Then  calling  the  clerk  in  charge,  he  said — 

"  Look  here,  Mr.  Berder,  I  grouped  the  articles  on  this 
counter  for  you  once,  did  I  not  ?  " 

"Yes  sir!" 

"  Let  me  find  them  Monday  morning  just  as  I  arranged 
them  on  that  occasion." 

The  young  man  looked  as  blank  and  dismayed  as  if  he 
had  been  ordered  to  swallow  them  all  before  Monday 
morning. 

He  went  to  work  and  jumbled  them  up  as  if  that  was 
grouping  them,  and  then  asked  one  or  two  of  the  other 
cieiks  what  they  thought  of  it.  They  shook  their  heads, 
uud  said  it  looked  worse  than  before. 

"  I  vill  study  over  him  all  day  to-morrow,  and  den  vilJ 


PROMOTED. 


119 


come  early  Monday  and  fix  him,"  and  the  perplexed  youth 
took  himself  off. 

Dennis  felt  almost  sure  that  he  could  arrange  it  as  Mr 
Ludolph  had,  or  with  something  of  the  same  effect,  but 
did  not  like  to  offer  his  services,  not  knowing  how  ihey 
would  be  received,  for  Mr.  Berder  had  taken  a  special  de- 
hght  in  snubbing  him. 

After  the  duties  of  the  store  were  over,  Dennis  wrote 
to  his  mother  a  warm,  bright,  filial  letter,  portraying  the 
scene  of  the  day  in  its  comic  light,  making  all  manner  of 
fun  of  himself,  that  he  might  hide  the  fact  that  he  had  suf- 
fered. But  he  did  not  hide  it,  as  a  return  letter  proved, 
for  it  was  full  of  sympathy  and  indignation  that  her  son 
should  be  so  treated,  but  also  full  of  praise  for  his  Chris- 
tian manliness  and  patience. 

"  And  now,  my  son,"  she  wrote,  "let  me  tell  you  of  at 
least  two  results  of  your  steady,  faithful  performance  of 
your  present  humble  duties.  The  money  you  send  so  reg- 
ularly is  more  than  sufficient  for  our  simple  wants.  We 
have  every  comfort,  and  I  am  laying  something  by  for  sick- 
ness and  trouble,  for  both  are  pretty  sure  to  come  before 
long,  in  this  world.  In  the  second  place  you  have  given 
me  that  which  is  far  better  than  money — comfort  and 
strength.  I  feel  more  and  more  that  we  can  lean  upon 
you  as  our  earthly  support,  and  not  find  you  a  '  broken 
reed.'  While  so  many  sons  are  breaking  their  mother's 
hearts,  you  are  filling  mine  with  hope  and  joy.  I  am  no 
prophetess,  my  son,  but  from  the  sure  word  of  God  I  pre 
diet  for  you  much  happiness  and  prosperity  for  thus  cheer 
ing  and  providing  for  your  widowed  mother.  Mark  my 
words.  God  has  tried  you  and  not  found  you  wanting. 
He  will  soon  give  you  better  work  to  do — work  more  in 
keeping  with  your  character  and  ability." 

This  prediction  was  fulfilled  before  Dennis  received 
the  letter  containing  it,  and  it  happened  on  this  wise. 


120  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

Early  Monday  morning  Mr.  Berder  appeared  and  at- 
tempted the  hopeless  task  of  grouping  the  articles  on  his 
table,  in  accordance  with  Mr.  Ludolph's  orders.  After  an 
hour's  work  he  exclaimed  in  despair, — 

"  I  cannot  do  him  to  save  my  life." 

Dennis  at  a  distance,  with  a  half  amused,  half  pitying 
face,  had  watched  Mr.  Berder's  wonderful  combinations, 
and  when  Rip  Van  Winkle  was  placed  between  two  togaed 
Roman  Senators,  and  Ichabod  Crane  arranged  as  if  mak- 
ing love  to  a  Greek  Goddess,  he  came  near  laughing  out- 
right. But  when  Mr.  Berder  spoke,  he  approached  and 
said  kindly  and  respectfully — 

"  Will  you  let  me  try  to  help  you  ?  " 

"  Yes,"  said  Mr.  Berder,  "  you  cannot  make  things 
vorse." 

Acting  upon  this  ungracious  permission,  Dennis  folded 
his  arms  and  studied  the  table  for  five  minutes. 

"  Come,"  said  Mr.  Berder,  "  standing  dare  and  looking 
so  vise  as  an  owl,  von't  help  matters.  Mr.  Ludolph  will 
be  here  soon." 

"  I  am  not  losing  time,"  said  Dennis,  ana  a  moment 
proved  he  was  not,  for  having  formed  a  general  plan  for 
its  arrangement,  he  went  rapidly  to  work,  and  in  a  quarter 
of  an  hour,  could  challenge  Mr.  Ludolph  or  any  other 
critic  to  find  serious  fault. 

"  There !  I  could  do  better  if  I  had  more  time,  but  I 
must  go  to  my  sweeping  and  dusting,  or  Mr.  Schwartz 
will  be  down  on  me,  and  he  is  pretty  heavy,  you  know.  I 
never  saw  such  a  man, — he  can  see  a  grain  of  dust  half 
across  the  store." 

Mr.  Berder  had  looked  at  Dennis's  quick  skillful  mo- 
tions in  blank  amazement,  and  then  broke  out  into  un- 
wonted panegyric  for  him, 

"  I  say,  Meet,  dat's  capital !  Where  you  learn  him?" 
Then  in  a  paroxysm  of  generosity  he  added, 


PROMOTED.  lai 

"  Dar's  a  quarter  for  you." 

"  No  I  thank  you,"  said  Dennis,  "  I  did  not  do  it  foi 
money." 

"  Vat  did  the  fool  do  it  for,  den,  I'd  like  to  know," 
muttered  Mr.  Berder,  the  philosophy  of  his  life  resuming 
its  former  control.  "  Saved  a  quarter,  anyhow,  and  vat's 
more,  know  vare  to  go  next  time  de  old  man  comes  down 
on  me." 

A  little  after  nine  Mr.  and  Miss  Ludolph  came  in,  and 
paused  at  the  table.  Dennis,  unnoticed,  stood  behind 
Benjamin  Franklin  and  Joan  of  Arc,  placed  lovingly  to- 
gether on  another  counter,  face  to  face,  as  if  in  mutual 
admiration,  and  from  his  hiding  place  watched  the  scene 
before  him  with  intense  anxiety.  One  thought  only  filled 
his  mind — would  they  approve  or  condemn  his  taste,  for 
he  had  arranged  the  table  on  a  plan  of  his  own.  His 
heart  leaped  up  within  him  when  Mr.  Ludolph  said — 

"  Why,  Berder,  this  is  excellent.  To  be  sure  you  have 
taken  your  own  method,  and  followed  your  own  taste,  but 
I  find  no  fault  with  that,  when  you  produce  an  effect  Uke 
this." 

"  I  declare,  father,  chimed  in  Miss  Ludolph,  "  this  ta- 
ble pleases  me  greatly.  It  is  a  little  oasis  in  this  great 
desert  of  a  store.  Mr.  Berder,  I  compliment  you  on  your 
taste.  You  shall  help  me  re-arrange,  artistically,  every 
thing  in  the  building." 

Dennis  in  his  agitation,  came  near  precipitating  Ben- 
jamin Franklin  into  the  arms  of  Joan  of  Arc,  a  position 
scarcely  in  keeping  with  either  character. 

■"  Yes,  Christine,  that  is  true,"  continued  Mr.  Ludolph, 
"  Mr.  Berder  will  be  just  the  one  to  help  you,  and  I  am 
glad  you  have  found  one  competent.  By  all  the  furies ! 
just  compare  this  table  with  the  one  next  to  it,  where  the 
Past,  Present,  and  Future  have  not  the  slighest  regard  for 
each  other,  and  satyrs  and  angels,  philosophers  and  ban- 


xaa  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

dits  are  mixed  up  about  as  closely  as  in  real  life.  Here, 
Beider,  try  your  hand  at  this  counter  also  ;  and  you,  young 
men,  gather  round  and  see  what  a  difference,  when  ari 
instead  of  mathematics  rul^s  the  world  of  Art.  If  this 
thing  goes  on,  we  shall  have  the  golden  age  b^ck  again  in 
the  store. ''' 

Mr.  Berder,  though  somewhat  confused,  had  received 
all  his  compliments  with  bows  and  smiles.  3ut  Dennis, 
the  moment  the  thrill  of  joy  was  over  that  he  had  pleased 
Mr.  and  Miss  Ludolph's  fastidious  taste,  felt  himself  red- 
dening with  honest  indignation  that  Mr.  Border  should 
carry  off  all  his  laurels  before  his  face.  Bui  he  resolved 
to  say  nothing,  knowing  that  time  would  righv  him.  When 
Mr.  Ludolph  asked  the  young  men  to  step  torward,  he 
came  with  the  others. 

"That's  right,  Fleet,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph  again,  "you 
can  get  a  useful  hint,  too,  like  enough." 

"  Nonsense,  father,"  said  Miss  Ludolph,  in  a  tone  not 
so  low  but  that  Dennis  heard  it,  "  why  spoil  a  good  sweep- 
er and  duster  by  putting  uppish  notions  in  his  head.  He 
keeps  the  store  cleaner  than  any  man  you  ever  had,  a"d  I 
don't  soil  my  dresses  as  I  used  to." 

Dennis's  color  heightened  a  little,  and  his  lips  grew 
firmer  together,  but  he  gave  no  other  sign  that  he  heard 
this  limitation  of  his  hope  and  ambition.  But  it  cut  him 
rather  deep.  The  best  he  could  ever  do,  then,  in  her  view 
was  to  keep  her  dresses  from  being  soiled. 

In  the  meantime  Mr.  Berder  had  shown  great  embar- 
rassment at  Mr.  Ludolph's  unexpected  request.  After  a 
few  moments  of  awkward  hesitation  he  stammered  out 
that  he  could  do  it  better  alone.  The  suspicion  of  keen 
Mr.  Ludolph  was  at  once  aroused,  and  he  persisted — 

"O  come,  Mr.  Berder,  we  don't  expect  you  to  do  youi 
best  in  a  moment,  but  a  person  of  your  taste  can  certainly 
make  a  great  change  for  the  better  in  the  table  before  you." 


PROMOTED. 


123 


In  sheer  desperation  the  entrapped  youth  attempted 
the  task,  but  he  had  not  bungled  five  minutes  before  Mr. 
Ludolph  said  sharply, 

"  Mr.  Berder,  you  did  not  arrange  this  table." 

"  Veil,"  whined  Mr.  Berder,  "  I  didn't  say  dat  I  did.** 

"  You  caused  us  to  believe  that  you  did,"  said  Mr.  Lu- 
dolph, his  brow  growing  dark.  "  Now,  one  question,  and 
I  wish  the  truth  :  Who  did  arrange  this  table  ?  " 

"Vleet,  dare,  helped  me,"  gasped  Mr.  Berder. 

"  Helped  you  ?  Mr.  Fleet,  step  forward,  if  you  please, 
for  I  intend  to  have  the  truth  of  this  matter.  How  much 
help  did  Mr.  Berder  give  you  in  arranging  this  table  ?  " 

"  None,  si^"  said  Dennis,  looking  straight  into  Mr. 
Ludolph's  eyes. 

All  looked  with  great  surprise  at  Dennis,  especially 
Miss  Ludolph,  who  regarded  him  most  curiously.  How 
different  he  appears  from  Pat  Murphy,  she  again  thought. 

"  Some  one  has  told  a  lie,  now,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph 
sternly.  "  Mr.  Fleet,  I  shall  put  you  to  the  same  test  that 
Berder  failed  in.  Arrange  that  counter  sufficiently  well 
to  prove  that  it  was  your  hands  that  arranged  this." 

Dennis  stepped  forward  promptly,  but  with  a  pale  face 
and  compressed  lips.  Feeling  that  both  honor  and  suc- 
cess were  at  stake,  he  grouped  and  combined  every  thing 
as  before,  as  far  as  the  articles  would  permit,  having  no 
time  to  originate  a  new  plan.  As  he  worked,  the  clerks 
gazed  in  open  astonishment,  Mr.  Ludolph  looked  signifi- 
cantly at  his  daugnter,  while  she  watched  him  with  some- 
thing of  the  same  wonder  which  we  have  when  one  of  the 
lower  animals  show  human  sagacity  and  skill. 

Mr.  Ludolph  was  Napoleonic  in  other  respects  than  his 
ambition  and  selfishness.  He  was  shrewd  enough  to 
"  promote  on  the  field  for  meritorious  services."  There- 
fore, as  Dennis's  task  approached  completion,  he  said — 

"  That  will  do,  Mr.  Fleet,  you  can  finish  the  work  at 


134 


BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 


your  leisure.  Mr.  Berder,  you  are  discharged  from  this 
day  for  deception.  1  would  have  borne  with  your  incom- 
petency if  you  had  been  truthful.  But  I  never  trust  any 
one  who  has  deceived  me  once,"  he  said,  so  sternly  that 
even  Christine's  cheek  paled.  "  Mr.  Schwartz  will  settle 
with  you,  and  let  me  never  Fee  or  hear  from  you  again. 
Mr.  Fleet,  I  promote  you  to  Mr.  Berder's  counter  and 

pay." 

Thus  this  man  of  the  world,  without  a  thought  of  pity, 
mercy,  or  kindly  feeling  in  either  case,  gave  one  of  his 
clerks  a  new  impetus  towards  the  devil,  and  another  an 
important  lift  up  to  better  things,  and  then  went  his 
way,  congratulating  himself  that  all  things  had  worked 
together  for  his  good,  that  morning,  though  where  he  would 
find  another  Dennis  Fleet  to  fill  Pat's  place,  now  vacant 
again,  he  did  not  know. 

But  Miss  Ludolph  looked  at  Dennis  somewhat  kindly, 
and  with  a  little  honest  admiration  in  her  face.  He 
was  so  different  from  what  she  had  supposed  him  to  be  as 
a  matter  of  course,  and  had  just  done  in  a  quiet  manly 
way  a  thing  most  pleasing  to  her,  so  she  said  with  a  smile 
that  seemed  perfectly  heavenly  to  him, — 

"  Vou  are  above  blacking  boots,  sir,"  and  then  think- 
ing that  a  cut  at  his  discomfited  rival  would  gratify  him, 
she  turned  to  Mr.  Berder  and  said,  "  And  you,  sir,  it 
seems,  are  fit  for  nothing  else." 

She  would  have  known  her  mistake  if  she  had  heard 
Dennis's  soliloquy  when  left  to  himself,  "How  could  she 
hit  him  when  he  was  down." 


JUST  IN  TIME.  125 


CHAPTER.  XVIII. 

JUST   IN   TIME. 

Ai'  the  close  of  the  day  on  which  Dennis  received  his 
promotion,  and  his  horizon  was  widened  so  unexpectedly, 
Mr.  Ludolph  in  passing  out,  noticed  him  engaged  as  usual 
on  one  of  Pat  Murphy's  old  tasks.  He  stopped  and 
spoke  kindly, — 

"  Well,  Fleet;  where  am  I  going  to  find  a  man  to  fill 
your  place  made  vacant  to-day  ?" 

"  Would  you  be  willing  to  listen  to  a  suggestion  from 
me  ?" 

«  Certainly." 

"  If  a  young  boy  was  employed  to  black  boots,  run  er- 
rands, and  attend  to  minor  matters,  I  think  that  by 
industry  I  might  for  a  while  fill  both  positions.  In  a  short 
time  the  furnace  will  require  no  further  attention."  I  am 
a  very  early  riser,  and  think  that  by  a  little  good  manage- 
ment, I  can  keep  the  store  in  order  and  still  be.  on  hand 
to  attend  to  my  counter  when  customers  are  about." 

Mr.  Ludolph  was  much  pleased  with  the  proposition, 
and  said  promptly, 

"  You  may  try  it  Fleet,  and  I  will  pay  you  according 
ly.     Do  you  know  of  a  boy  who  will  answer  ?" 

"  I  think  I  do,  sir.  There  is  a  German  lad  in  my  mis 
sion  class  that  has  interested  me  very  much.  His  fathei 
is  really  a  superior  artist,  but  is  throwing  himself  away 
with  drink,  and  his  mother  is  engaged  in  an  almost  hope- 
less effort  to  support  the  family.  They  have  seen  much 
better  days,  and  their  life  seems  very  hard  in  ccitrast  >/ith 
the  past." 


136  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

"  Can  we  trust  such  a  boy  ?  Their  very  necessities 
may  lead  to  theft." 

"  They  are  not  of  the  thieving  sort,  sir.  I  am  satisfied 
that  tliey  would  all  starve  father  than  touch  a  penny  that 
did  not  belong  to  them." 

"  Very  well,  then,  let  him  come  and  see  me  ;  but  I  will 
hold  you  responsible  for  him." 

Mr.  Ludolph  being  in  a  good  humor  was  disposed  to 
banter  Dennis,  so  he  said — 

"  Do  you  find  time  to  be  a  missionary,  also  ?  Are  you 
not  in  danger  of  becoming  a  "jack  at  all  trades  ?" 

"I  am  not  entitled  to  the  first  character,  and  hope  to 
shun  the  latter.  I  merely  teach  a  dozen  boys  in  a  mis- 
sion school  on  Sundays." 

"  When  you  ought  to  be  taking  a  good  long  nap,  or 
off  on  the  lake  for  fresh  air  and  a  change." 

"  I  should  be  dishonest  if  I  spent  my  Sabbaths  in  that 
way." 

"  How  so  ?" 

"  I  should  give  the  lie  to  my  profession  and  belief.  I 
must  drop  the  name  of  Christian  when  I  live  for  myself." 

"  And  if  you  should  drop  it,  do  you  think  you  would 
be  much  the  loser  ?" 

"  Yes  sir,"  said  Dennis  with  quiet  emphasis. 

"You  are  expecting  great  reward  in  some  sort  of  a 
paradise,  for  your  mission  work,  etc.  ?" 

"  Nothing  done  for  God  is  forgotten  or  unrewarded." 

"  Believing  that,  it  seems  to  me  that  you  are  looking 
after  self-interest  as  much  as  the  rest  of  us,"  said  his  em- 
ployer with  a  shrewd  smile. 

Looking  straight  into  Mr.  Ludolph's  eyes,  Dennis  said 
earne>i!y — 

"  Without  boasting,  I  think  that  I  can  say  that  I  try  to 
serve  you  faithfully,  li  you  could  see  my  heart,  I  am 
sure   you   would  lincl   gratitude  for  your  kindness,  part  of 


JUST  IN  TIME.  127 

my  motive,  as  well  as  my  wages.  In  the  same  manner, 
while  I  do  not  lose  sight  of  the  rich  rewards  God  promis- 
es and  daily  gives  for  the  little  I  can  do  for  Him,  I  am  cer- 
tain that  I  can  do  much  out  of  simple  gratitude  and  love, 
and  ask  no  reward. 

"  Ignorance  is  certainly  bliss  in  your  case,  young 
man.  Stick  to  your  harmless  superstition  as  long  as  you 
can." 

And  he  walked  away  muttering  "  Delusion,  delusion ! 
I  have  not  said  a  word  or  done  a  thing  for  him  in  which  I 
had  not  in  view  my  interests  only,  and  yet  the  poor  young 
fool  sees  in  the  main  disinterested  kindness.  Little 
trouble  have  the  wily  priests  in  imposing  on  such  victims, 
and  so  they  get  their  hard  earned  wages  and  set  them 
propagating  the  delusion  in  mission  schools,  when  mind 
and  body  need  change  and  rest.  Suppose  there  is  a  su- 
preme being  in  the  universe,  what  a  monstrous  absurdity 
to  imagine  that  he  would  trouble  himself  to  reward  this 
Yankee  youth  for  teaching  a  dozen  ragamuffins  in  a  ten- 
ement house  mission  school." 

Thus  Mr.  Ludolph's  soliloquy  proved  that  his  own  pride 
and  selfishness  had  destroyed  the  faculty  by  which  he 
could  see  God.  The  blind  are  not  more  oblivious  to 
color,  than  he  to  those  divine  qualities  which  are  designed 
to  win  and  enchain  the  heart.  A  man  may  sadly  mutilate 
his  own  soul. 

At  a  dinner-table  where  coarse  abundance  was  con- 
spicuously absent,  and  a  few  delicate  dishes  of  the 
choicest  viands  made  the  bill  of  fare,  Mr.  Ludolph  and 
his  daughter  discussed  the  events  of  the  day. 

"  I  am  glad,"'  said  the  latter,  "  that  he  is  willing  to  fill 
Pat'b  place,  foi  he  keeps  everything  so  clean.  A  dusty 
slovenly  store  is  my  abomination.  Then  it  shows  that  he 
has  no  silly,  uppish  notions  so  common  to  these  Ameri- 
cans. (Though  born  here.  Miss  Ludolph  never  thought 
herself  otherwise  than  a  German  lady  of  rank.)     But  I 


128  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

do  not  wish  to  see  him  blacking  boots  again.  Yet  he  is 
an  odd  genius.  How  comically  he  looked  bowing  to  me 
with  one  of  Mr.  Schwartz's  big  boot  describing  a  graceful 
curve  on  a  level  with  his  head.  Let  old  Schwartz  black  his 
own  boots.  He  ought  to  as  a  punishment  for  carrying 
around  so  much  leather.  This  Fleet  must  have  seen 
better  days,  for  he  is  as  different  from  Pat  Murphy  as 
bronze  from  cast  iron.  He  is  like  all  Yankees,  however, 
sharp  after  the  dollar,  though  he  seems  more  willing  to 
work  for  it  than  most  of  them." 

"  I'll  wager  you  a  pair  of  gloves,"  said  her  father, 
"  that  they  get  a  good  percentage  of  it  down  at  the  mis- 
sion school.  He  is  just  the  subject  for  a  cunning  priest, 
because  he  sincerely  believes  in  their  foolery.  He  be- 
longs to  a  tribe  now  nearly  extinct,  I  imagine — the  mar- 
tyrs, who  in  old-fashioned  times,  died  for  all  sorts  of 
delusions." 

"  How  time  mellows  and  changes  everything.  There 
is  something  heroic  and  worthy  of  art  in  the  ancient  mar- 
tyrdoms, while  nothing  is  more  repulsive  than  modern 
fanaticism.  It  is  a  shame,  though,  that  this  young  man, 
with  mother  and  sisters  to  support,  should  be  robbed  of 
his  hard  earnings  as  was  Pat  Murphy  by  his  priest,  and  I 
will  try  to  open  his  eyes  some  day." 

"  I  predict  for  you  no  success." 

"  Why  so  ? — he  seems  intelligent." 

"  I  have  not  studied  character  all  my  life  in  vain.  He 
would  regard  you,  my  fair  daughter,  as  the  devil  tempting 
him  in  the  form  of  an  angel  of  light." 

"  He  had  better  not  be  so  plain  spoken  as  yourself." 

"  O,  no  need  of  Fleet's  speaking;  his  face  is  like  the 
open  page  of  a  book." 

"  Indeed  !  a  face  like  a  sign-board  is  a  most  unfortu- 
nate one,  I  .shoukl  think."' 

"  Most  fortunate  for  us.  I  wish  I  could  read  every 
one  as  I  can  Fleet." 


JUST  IN  TIME.  129 

"  You  trust  no  one,  I  believe,  father." 
"  1  believe  what  I  see  and  know." 
*  I  wish  I  had  your  power  of  seeing  and  knowing.     But 
how  did  he  get  his  artistic  knowledge  and  taste." 

"  That  I  have  not  inquired  into  fully,  as  yet.  I  think 
he  has  an  unusual  native  aptness  for  these  things,  and 
gains  hints  and  instruction  where  others  would  see  noth- 
ing. And  as  you  say,  in  the  better  days  past  he  m&y  have 
had  some  advantages." 

"  Well,  said  she,  "  if  my  greyhound.  Wolf  here  should 
go  to  the  piano  and  execute  an  opera,  I  should  not  have 
been  more  astonished  than  I  was  this  morning." 

And  then  their  conversation  glided  off  on  other  topics. 

After  dessert,  Mr.  Ludolph  lighted  a  cigar  and  sat 
down  to  the  evening  paper,  while  his  daughter  went  to 
the  piano  and  evoked  from  it  true  after-dinner  music — 
light,  brilliant,  mirth-inspiring.  Then  both  adjourned  to 
their  private  billiard-room. 


The  scene  of  our  story  now  changes  from  Mr.  Lu- 
dolph's  luxurious  apartments  in  one  of  the  most  fashion- 
able hotels  in  the  city  to  a  forlorn  attic  in  De  Kovan 
street.  It  is  the  scene  of  a  struggle  as  desperate,  as 
heroic,  against  as  tremendous  odds  as  was  ever  carried  on 
in  the  days  of  the  Crusades.  But  as  the  foremost  figure 
in  this  long,  weary  conflict,  was  not  an  armed  and  pano- 
plied knight,  but  merely  a  poor  German  woman,  only  God 
and  the  angels  took  much  interest  in  it.  Still  upon  this 
evening  she  was  almost  vanquished.  She  seemed  to  have 
but  one  vantage  point  left  on  earth.  For  a  wonder,  her 
husband  was  comparatively  sober,  and  sat  brooding 
with  head  in  his  hands  over  the  store  where  a  fire  was 
slowly  dying  out.  The  last  coal  they  had  was  fast  turning 
to  ashes.  From  a  cradle  came  a  low,  wailing  cry.  It  was 
that  of  hunger.     On  an  old  chest  in  a  dusky  corner  sat  a 


I30 


BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 


boy  about  thi  -teen.  Though  all  else  was  in  shadow,  his 
large  eyes  shone  with  unnatural  brightness,  and  followed 
his  mother's  feeble  efforts  at  the  wash-tub  with  that  expres- 
sion of  premature  sadness  so  pathetic  in  childhood.  Un- 
der a  rickety  deal  table  three  other  and  smaller  children 
were  devouiing  some  crusts  of  bread  in  a  ravenous  wav 
like  half-famished  young  animals.  In  a  few  moments  they 
came  out  and  clamored  for  more,  around — not  their  father; 
no  intuitive  turning  to  him  for  support — but  the  poor  over- 
tasked mother.  The  boy  came  out  of  his  corner  and  tried 
to  draw  them  off  and  interest  them  in  something  else,  but 
they  were  like  a  pack  of  hungry  little  wolves.  The  boy's 
face  was  almost  as  sharp  and  famine-pinched  as  his  moth- 
er's, but  he  seemed  to  have  lost  all  thought  of  himself  in 
his  sonowful  regard  for  her.  As  the  younger  children 
clamored  and  dragged  upon  her,  the  point  of  endurance 
was  passed,  and  the  poor  woman  gave  way.  With  a  de- 
spairing-cry she  sank  upon  a  chair  and  covered  her  face 
with  her  apron. 

"  O  mine  Gott,  O  mine  Gott,"  she  cried,  "  I  can  do  not 
von  more  stroke  if  ve  all  die." 

In  a  moment  her  son  had  his  arms  around  her  neck, 
and  said — 

"  O  moder,  don't  cry,  don't  cry.  Mr.  Fleet  said,  God 
would  surely  help  us  in  time  of  trouble  if  we  would  only 
ask  Him." 

"  I've  ask  Him,  and  ask  Him,  but  de  help  don't  come. 
I  can  do  no  more,"  and  a  tempest  of  despairing  sobs 
shook  her  gaunt  frame. 

"  The  boy  seemed  to  have  got  past  tears,  and  just  fixed 
his  large  eyes,  full  of  reproach  and  sorrow,  on  his  father. 

The  man  rose  and  turned  his  bloodshot  eyes  slowly 
around  the  room.  The  whole  scene,  with  its  meaning, 
seemed  to  dawn  upon  him.  His  mind  was  not  so  clouded 
by  the  fumes  of  liquor  but  that  he  could  comprehend  the 


JUSI    IN   TIME.  131 

supreme  miser)  of  the  situation.  He  heard  his  children 
crying — fairly  howling  for  bread.  He  saw  the  wife  he  had 
sworn  to  love  and  honor,  where  she  had  fallen  in  her  un- 
equal conflict,  brave,  but  overpowered.  He  remembered 
the  wealthy  burgher's  blooming,  courted  daughter,  that  he 
had  lured  away  to  marry  him,  a  poor  artist.  He  remem- 
bered how  in  spite  of  her  father's  commands  and  mother's 
tears,  she  had  left  home  and  luxury  to  follow  him  through- 
out the  world  because  of  her  faith  in  him,  and  love  for 
him — how  under  her  inspiration  he  had  risen  to  great 
promise  as  an  artist  till  fame  and  fortune  became  almost 
a  certainty,  and  then  under  the  debasing  influence  of  his 
terrible  appetite,  he  had  dragged  her  down  and  down,  till 
novf,  prematurely  old,  broken  in  health,  broken  in  heart,  he 
saw  her  fall  helplessly  before  the  hard  drudgery  that  she 
no  longer  had  strength  to  perform.  With  a  sickening  hor- 
ror he  remembered  that  he  had  taken  even  the  pittance 
she  had  wrung  from  that  washtub,  not  to  feed  his  Children, 
but  his  accursed  appetite  for  drink.  Even  his  purple, 
bloated  face  grew  livid  as  all  the  past  rushed  upon  him, 
aod  despair  laid  an  icy  hand  upon  his  heart. 

A  desperate  purpose  formed  itself  within  his  mind. 

Turning  to  the  wall  where  hung  a  noble  picture,  a 
lovely  landscape,  whose  rich  coloring,  warm  sunlight,  and 
rural  peace,  formed  a  sharp,  strange  contrast  with  the 
meagre,  famine-stricken  apartment,  he  was  about  to  lift 
it  down  from  its  fastening  when  his  hand  was  arrested  by 
r  word — 

"  Father !  " 

He  turned,  and  saw  his  son  looking  at  him  with  his 
great  eyes  full  of  horror  and  alarm,  as  if  he  were  com- 
mitting  a  murder. 

"  I  tell  you  I  must,  and  I  vill,"  said  he  savagely. 

His  wife  looked  up,  sprang  to  his  side,  and  with  hei 
hands  upon  his  arm,  said, 


132 


BARRIERS  BURNED   AWAY. 


"  No,  Berthold,  you  must  not,  you  shall  not  sell  dut 
picture." 

He  silently  pointed  to  his  children  crying  for  bread. 

"  Take  de  dress  off  my  back  to  sell,  but  not  dat  pic- 
ture. Ve  may  as  well  die  before  him  goes,  for  ve  cer- 
tainly vill  after.  Dat  is  de  only  ting  left  of  de  happy  past. 
Dat,  in  Gott's  hands,  is  my  only  hope  for  de  future.  Dat 
picture  tells  you  vat  you  vas,  vat  you  might  be  still  if  you 
would  only  let  drink  alone.  Many's  de  weary  day,  many's 
de  long  night,  I've  prayed  dat  dat  picture  vould  vin  you 
back  to  your  former  self,  ven  tears  and  suffering  vere  in 
vain.  Leave  him,  and  some  day  he  vill  tell  you  so  plain 
vat  you  are,  and  vat  you  can  be,  dat  you  break  de  horrid 
spell  dat  chains  you,  and  your  artist-soul  come  again. 
Leave  him,  our  only  hope,  and  sole  bar  against  despair 
and  death.  I  vill  go  and  beg  a  tousand  times  before  dat 
picture's  sold ;  for  if  he  goes,  your  artist-soul  no  more 
come  back,  and  you're  lost,  and  ve  all  are  lost." 

The  man  hesitated.  His  good  angel  was  pleading  with 
him,  but  in  vain. 

Stamping  his  foot  with  rage  and  despair,  he  shouted 
hoarsely,  "  It  is  too  late,  I  am  lost  now." 

And  he  tore  the  picture  from  its  fastening.  His  wife 
sank  back  against  the  wall  with  a  groan  as  if  her  very  soul 
was  departing. 

But  before  his  rash  steps  could  leave  the  desolation  he 
had  made,  he  was  confronted  by  the  tall  form  of  Dennis 
Fleet. 

The  man  stared  at  him  for  a  moment  as  if  he  had  been 
an  apparition,  and  then  said  in  a  hard  tone, — 

"  Let  me  pass  !  " 

Dennis  had  knocked  for  some  time,  but  such  had  been 
the  excitement  within,  no  one  had  regarded.  •  He  had, 
tlierefore,  heard  the  wife's  appeal  and  its  answer,  and  from 
what  he  knew  of  the  family  from   his  mission  scholar,  the 


JUST  IN  TIME.  133 

boy  Ernst,  comprehended  the  situation  in  the  main.  When, 
therefore,  matters  reached  the  crisis,  he  opened  the  door 
and  met  the  infatuated  man  as  he  was  about  to  throw 
away  the  last  relic  of  his  former  self  and  happier  life. 
With  great  tact  he  appeared  as  if  he  knew  nothing,  and 
quietly  taking  a  chair  he  sat  down  with  his  back  against 
the  door,  thus  barring  egress.  In  a  pleasant,  affable  tone, 
he  said, — 

"  Mr.  Bruder,  I  came  to  see  you  on  a  little  business 
to-night ;  as  I  was  in  something  of  a  hurry,  and  no  one 
appearing  to  hear  my  knock,  I  took  the  liberty  of  com- 
ing in." 

The  hungry  little  ones  looked  at  him  with  their  round 
eyes  of  children's  curiosity,  and  for  a  time  ceased  their 
clamors.  The  wife  sank  into  a  chair  and  bowed  her  head 
in  her  hands  with  the  indifference  of  despair.  Hope  had 
gone.  A  gleam  of  joy  lighted  up  Ernst's  pale  face  at  the 
sight  of  his  beloved  teacher,  and  he  stepped  over  to  his 
mother  and  commenced  whispering  in  her  ear,  but  she 
heeded  him  not.  The  man's  face  wore  a  sullen,  danger- 
ous, yet  irresolute  expression.  It  was  evident  that  he 
half  believed  that  Dennis -was  knowingly  trying  to  thwart 
him,  and  such  vas  his  mad  frenzy  he  was  ready  for  aiiy 
desperate  deed. 


«34 


BARRIERS   BURNED  AWAY. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

RESCUED. 

In  a  tone  of  suppressed  excitement,  which  he  tried  in 
vain  to  render  steady,  Mr.  Bruder  said — 

"  You  haf  he  advantage  of  me,  sir.  I  know  not  your 
name.  Vat  is  more,  I  am  not  fit  for  bissiness  dis  night — 
indeed,  I  haf  important  bissiness  elsewhere.  You  must 
excuse  me,"  he  added  sternly,  advancing  toward  the  door 
with  the  picture. 

"  Pardon  me,  Mr.  Bruder,"  said  Dennis  politely.  "  I 
throvv  myself  entirely  on  your  courtesy,  and  must  ask  as  a 
very  great  favor  that  you  will  not  take  away  that  picture 
till  I  see  it,  for  that,  in  part,  is  just  what  I  came  for.  I 
am  in  the  picture  trade  myself,  and  think  that  I  am  a  tol- 
erably fair  judge  of  paintings.  I  heard  accidentally  you 
had  a  fine  one,  and  from  the  glimpse  I  catch  of  it,  I  think 
I  have  not  been  misinformed.  If  it  is  for  sale,  perhaps  I 
can  do  as  well  by  you  as  any  one  else.  I  am  employed  in 
Mr.  Ludolph's  great  store,  the  "Art  Building."  You 
probably  know  all  about  the  place." 

"  Yes,  I  know  him,"  said  the  man,  calming  down  some- 
what. 

'■  And  now  sir,"  said  Dennis,  with  a  gentle  winning 
courtesy  impossible   to  resist,  "will  you  do  me  the  favo 
of  showing  me  your  picture  ?  " 

He  treated  poor  Bruder  as  a  gentleman,  and  he  hav- 
in'4-  leally  been  one,  instinctively  inclined  toward  return 
in:C  like  courtesv.     Therefore  hj  said — 


RESCUED. 


^35 


"  O  certainly,  since  yon  vish  to  see  him.  T  suppose  I 
might  as  well  sell  him  to  you  as  any  von  else." 

Mr.  Bruder  was  a  man  of  violent  impulses,  and  his 
mad  excitement  was  fast  leaving  him  under  Dennis  s  cool 
business-like  manner.  To  gain  time  was  now  the  great 
desideratum. 

The  picture  having  been  replaced  upon  the  wall,  Mr. 
Bruder  took  the  lamp  and  held  it  so  as  throw  as  good  a 
light  as  possible. 

Dennis  folded  his  arms  calmly  and  commenced  its 
study.  He  had  meant  to  act  a  part,  to  pretend  deep  in- 
terest and  desire  for  long  critical  study,  that  he  might  se- 
cure more  time,  but  in  a  few  moments  he  became  honestly 
absorbed  in  the  beautiful  and  exqusitely  finished  land- 
scape. 

The  poor  man  watched  him  keenly.  Old  associations 
and  feelings,  seemingly  long  dead,  awoke.  As  he  saw 
Dennis  manifest  every  mark  of  true  and  growing  appre- 
ciation, he  perceived  that  his  picture  was  being  studied  by 
a  connoisseur.  Then  his  artist-nature  began  to  quicken 
into  life  again.  His  eyes  glowed,  and  danced  rapidly 
from  Dennis  to  the  painting,  back  and  forth,  following  up 
the  judgment  on  each  and  every  part,  which  he  saw  writ- 
ten in  the  young  man's  face.  As  he  looked  and  watched, 
something  hke  hope  and  exultation  began  to  light  up  his 
sullen,  heavy  features — thought  and  feeling  to  spiritualize 
and  ennoble  what  but  a  little  before  had  been  so  coarse 
and  repulsive. 

Ernst  was  looking  at  X)ennis  in  wrapt  awe,  as  if  he 
were  a  messenger  from  heaven. 

The  poor  wife,  who  had  listened  in  a  dull  apathy  to  the 
conversation,  raised  her  head  in  sudden  and  intelligent 
interest  when  the  picture  was  replaced  on  the  wall.  It 
would  seem  that  her  every  hope  was  bound  up  in  that. 
i\s  she  saw  Dennis  and  her  husband  standing  before  it,  as 


136  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAV.  • 

she  saw  the  face  of  the  latter  begin  to  change  somewhat 
toward  his  old  former  self,  her  whole  soul  came  into  her 
great  blue  eyes,  and  she  watched  as  if  more  than  life  were 
at  stake. 

If  that  meagre  apartment  with  its  inmates,  their  con- 
trasts of  character,  their  expressive  faces,  could  have  then 
been  portrayed,  it  would  have  made  a  picture  with  power 
to  move  the  coldest  heart. 

At  last  Dennis  drew  a  long  breath,  turned  and  gave  his 
hand  to  the  man,  saying  with  hearty  emphasis, 

"Mr.  Bruder,  you  are  an  artist." 

The  poor  man  lifted  his  face  to  heaven  with  the  same 
expression  of  joy  and  gratitude  that  had  rested  on  it  long, 
long  years  ago  ,when  his  first  real  work  of  art  had  received 
similar  praise. 

His  wife  saw  and  remembered  it,  and  with  an  ecstatic 
cry  that  thrilled  Deainis's  soul,  exclaimed: 

"Ah,  mine  Gott  be  praised,  mine  Gott  be  praised,  his 
artist-soul  come  back." 

And  she  threw  herself  on  her  husband's  neck,  and 
clung  to  him  with  hysteric  energy.  The  man  melted  down 
completely,  and  bowing  his  head  upon  his  wife's  shoul- 
ders, his  whole  frame  shook  with  sobs. 

"  I  will  be  back  in  half  an  hour,"  said  Dennis,  hastily, 
brushing  tears  from  his  own  eyes.    "  Come  with  me,  Ernst." 

At  the  foot  of  the  stairs  Dennis  said : 

"  Take  this  money,  Ernst,  and  buy  bread,  butter,  tea, 
milk,  and  coal,  also  a  nice  large  steak,  for  I  am  going  to 
take  supper  with  you  to-night.  ,  I  will  stay  here  and  watch, 
for  your  father  must  not  be  permitted  to  go  out." 

"  O  Gott  bless  you,  Gott  bless  you,"  said  the  boy,  and 
he  hurried  away  to  do  his  errand. 

Dennis  walked  up  and  down  before  the  door  on  guard. 
Ernst  soon  returned,  and  carried  the  welcome  food  up- 
stairs.    After  a  little  time  he  stole  down  again  and  said. 


RESCUED. 


137 


"  Father's  quiet  and  queer  like.  Mother  has  given 
the  children  a  good  supper  and  put  them  to  bed.  Better 
come  now." 

"  In  a  few  moments  more  ;  you  go  back  and  sit  down 
quietly  and  say  nothing." 

After  a  little  Dennis  went  up  and  knocked  at  the  door. 
Mrs.  Bruder  opened  it,  and  held  out  her  hand.  Her 
quivering  lips  refused  to  speak,  but  her  eyes  filled  with 
grateful  tears.  The  children  were  tucked  away  in  bed. 
Ernst  crouched  by  the  fire  eating  some  bread  and  butter, 
for  he  was  cold  and  half-famished.  Mr.  Bruder  sat  in  the 
dusky  corner  with  his  head  in  his  hands,  the  picture  of 
dejection  and  sorrow.  But  as  Dennis  entered,  he  rose 
and  came  forward.  He  tried  to  speak,  but  for  a  moment 
could  not.     At  last  he  said,  hoarsely, 

"  Mr.  Fleet,  (for  dat  is  your  name,  my  boy  tells  me), 
you  haf  done  me  and  mine  a  great  kindness.  No  matter 
vat  the  result  is,  I  tank  you  as  I  never  tanked  any  Uving 
being.  I  believe  Gott  sent  you,  but  I  fear  too  late.  You 
see  before  you  a  miserable  wreck.  For  months  and  years 
I  have  been  a  brute,  a  devil.  Dat  picture  dare  show  you 
vat  I  vas,  vat  I  might  haf  been.  You  see  vat  I  am,"  he 
added,  with  an  expression  of  intense  loathing  and  self- 
disgust.  "  I  see  him  all  to-night  as  if  written  in  letters  of 
fire,  and  if  dare  is  a  worse  hell  than  de  von  I  feel  within 
my  soul,  Gott  only  knows  how  I  am  to  endure  him." 

"  Mr.  Bruder,  you  say  I  have  done  you  a  favor." 

"  Gott  knows  you  haf." 

"  I  want  you  to  do  me  one  in  return.  I  want  you  to 
let  me  be  your  friend,  said  Dennis,  holding  out  his  hand. 

The  man  trembled,  hesitated ;  at  last  he  said,  bro- 
kenly— 

"  I  am  not  fit — to  touch — your  hand." 

"  Mr.  Bruder,"  said  Dennis,  gently,  "  I  hope  that  I  am 
z  Christian." 


138  BARRIERS   BURNED  AWAY. 

"  Still  more,  den,  am  I  am  unfit  ever  to  be  in  your  pres- 
ence." 

"  What !  am  I  greater  than  my  Master  ?  Did  not  Christ 
take  the  hand  of  every  poor  struggling  man  on  earth  that 
would  let  Him  ?  Come,  Mr.  Bruder,  if  you  have  any  real 
gratitude  for  the  little  I  have  done  to  show  my  interest  in 
you  and  yours,  grant  me  my  request." 

"  Do  you  really  mean  him  ?  "  he  gasped.  "  Do  you 
really  want  to  be  drunken  old  Berthold  Bruder's  friend  ? " 

"  God  is  my  witness,  I  do,"  said  Dennis,  still  holding 
out  his  hand. 

The  poor  fellow  drew  a  few  short,  heavy  breaths,  and 
then  grasped  Dennis's  hand,  and  clung  to  it  as  a  drown- 
ing man  might. 

"  Oh  !  "  said  he,  after  a  few  moments  of  deep  emotion, 
"  I  feel  that  I  have  a  plank  under  me  now." 

"  God  grant  that  you  may  soon  feel  that  you  are  on  the 
Rock  Christ  Jesus,"  said  Dennis,  solemnly. 

Fearing  the  reaction  of  too  great  and  prolonged  emo- 
tion, Dennis  now  did  every  thing  in  his  power  to  calm 
and  quiet  his  new  found  friends.  He  told  them  that  he 
boarded  at  a  restaurant,  and  asked  him  if  he  might  take 
supper  with  them. 

"  Him  is  yours  already,"  said  Mr.  Bruder. 

"  No  it  isn't,"  said  Dennis,  "  not  after  I  have  given  it 
to  you.  But  I  want  to  talk  to  you  about  several  matters, 
for  I  think  you  can  be  of  great  service  to  me." 

And  he  told  them  of  his  experience  during  the  day  ; 
how  he  had  been  promoted,  and  that  he  wanted  Ernst  to 
come  and  aid  him  in  his  duties.  Then  he  touched  on  the 
matter  nearest  his  heart — his  own  wish  to  be  an  artist,  his 
need  of  instruction,  and  how  by  his  increase  of  pay  he 
had  now  the  means  of  taking  lessons,  and  still  be  able  to 
support  his  mother  and  sisters. 

"  And  now,  Mr.  Bruder,  I  feel  that  I  have  been  very 


RESCUED. 


139 


fortunate  in  making  your  acquaintance.  You  ha\e  the 
touch  and  tone  that  I  would  be  overjoyed  to  acquire. 
Will  you  give  me  lessons  ? " 

"  Yes,  morning,  noon,  and  night,  vithout  von  cent  of 
pay. » 

"  That  will  not  do.      I'll  not  take  one  on  those  terms." 

"  I  vill  do  vatever  you  vant  me  to,"  said  the  man,  sim- 
ply. "  I  vish  I  could  be  led  and  vatched  over  as  a  little 
child." 

Dennis  saw  his  pathetic  self-distrust,  and  it  touched 
him  deeply. 

"  As  your  friend,"  he  said  wifh  emphasis,  I  will  not  ad- 
vise you  to  do  anything  that  I  would  not  do  myself." 

So  they  arranged  that  Ernst  should  come  to  the  store 
in  the  morning,  and  Dennis  three  nights  in  the  week  for 
lessons. 

All  made  a  hearty  supper  save  Mr.  Bruder.  He  had 
reached  that  desperate  stage  when  his  diseased  stomach 
craved  drink  only.  But  a  strong  cup  of  tea,  and  some 
bread  that  he  washed  down  with  it,  heartened  him  a  little, 
and  it  was  evident  that  he  felt  better.  The  light  of  a  faint 
hope  was  dawning  in  his  face. 

Dennis  knew  something  of  the  physical  as  well  as 
moral  struggle  before  the  poor  man,  and  that  alfter  all  it 
was  exceedinglj'  problematical  whether  he  could  be  saved. 

Before  he  left  he  told  Mrs.  Bruder  to  make  him  some 
very  strong  coffee  in  the  morning,  and  to  let  him  drink  it 
through  the  day.  As  for  Bruder,  he  had  resolved  to  die 
rather  than  touch  another  drop  of  liquor  again. 

But  how  many  poor  victims  of  appetite  have  been 
haunted  to  the  grave  by  such  resolves — shattered  and 
gone  almost  as  soon  as  made. 

After  a  long,  earnest  talk,  in  which  much  of  the  past 
was  revealed  on  both  sides,  Dennis  drew  a  small  Testa- 
ment from  his  pocket  and  said, 


I40  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

Mr.  Bruder,  I  wish  to  direct  your  thoughts  to  a  bettef 
Friend  than  I  am  or  can  be.  Will  you  let  me  read  you 
something  about  Him  ?" 

"  Yes,  and  tank  you.  But  choose  something  strong- 
suited  to  me." 

Dennis  did  read  something  strong — the  story  of  the 
Demoniac  of  Gadara,  and  left  him  "  sitting  at  the  feet  of 
Jesus  clothed  and  in  his  right  mind." 

"  Mr.  Bruder,  permit  me  as  your  friend  to  say  that  I 
think  that  is  the  only  safe  place  for  you.  Your  better  self, 
your  true  naanhood  has  been  overpowered  by  the  demon 
of  intemperance.  I  do  not  undervalue  human  will  and 
purpose,  but  I  think  you  need  a  divine,  all-powerful  De- 
liverer." 

"  I  know  you  are  right,"  said  Mr.  Bruder.  "  I  haf  re- 
solved ober  and  ober  again,  only  to  do  vorse,  and  sink 
deeper  at  de  next  temptation,  till  at  last  T  gave  up  trying. 
Unless  I  am  sustained  by  some  strength  greater  dan  mine, 
I  haf  no  hope.  I  feel  dat  your  human  sympathy  and 
kindness  vill  be  a  great  help  to  me,  and  somehow  I  take 
him  as  an  earnest  dat  Gott  vill  be  kind  to  me  too." 

"  O !  Mr.  Fleet,"  he  continued,  as  Dennis  rose  to  go, 
"how  much  I  owe  to  you.  I  vas  in  hell  on  earth  ven  you 
came.  I  vould  haf  been  in  hell  beneath  before  morning. 
I  proposed,  from  the  proceeds  of  dat  picture,  to  indulge 
in  von  more  delirium,  and  den  seek  to  quench  all  in  de 
vaters  of  de  lake." 

Dennis  shuddered,  but  said, 

"  And  I  believe  that  God  purposes  that  you  should 
have  a  good  life  here,  and  a  happy  life  in  heaven.  Co- 
work  with  Him." 

"  If  He  vill  help  me,  I'll  try,"  said  the  man,  humbly. 
"  CjQot  night,  and  Gott  bless  you,"  and  he  almost  crushed 
Dennis'  hand. 

As  he  turned  to  Mrs.  Bruder,  he  was  much  struck  by 


MISS  LUDOLPH  MAKES  A  DISCOVERY.         14, 

her  appearance  :  she  was  very  pale,  and  a  wondeful  light 
shone  from  her  eyes.  She  took  his  hand  in  both  of  hers, 
and  looked  at  him  for  a  moment  with  an  expression  he 
could  never  forget,  and  then  slowly  pointed  heavenward 
without  a  word. 

Dennis  hastened  away,  much  overcome  by  his  own 
feelings.  But  the  silent,  deserted  streets  seemed  lumin- 
ous, such  was  the  joy  of  his  heart. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

MISS    LUDOLPH    MAKES   A   DISCOVERY. 

Several  hours  were  measured  off  from  a  neighboring 
steeple  before  Dennis's  excited  mind  was  sufficiently  calm 
to  permit  sleep,  and  even  then  he  often  started  up  from 
some  fantastic  dream,  in  which  the  Bruders  and  Mr.  and 
Miss  Ludolph  acted  many  strange  parts.  At  last  he 
seemed  to  hear  exquisite  music.  As  the  song  rose  and 
fell,  it  thrilled  him  with  delight.  Suddenly  it  appeared  to 
break  into  a  thousand  pieces,  and  fall  scattering  on  the 
ground  like  a  broken  string  of  pearls,  and  this  musical 
crash,  as  it  were,  awoke  him.  The  sun  was  shining  brightly 
into  the  room,  and  all  the  air  still  seemed  vibrating  with 
music.  He  started  up  and  realized  that  he  had  greatiy 
over-slept.  Much  vexed  he  commenced  dressing  in  haste, 
when  he  was  startled  by  a  brilliant  prelude  on  the  piano, 
and  a  voice  of  wonderful  power  and  sweetness  struck  into 
an  air  that  he  had  never  heard  before.  Soon  the  whole 
building  was  resonant  with  music,  and  Dennis  stood  spell- 
bound till  the  strange,  rich  sounds  died  away,  as  before, 
in  a  few  notes  from  the  instrument  that  had  seemed  in  his 
dream,  Uke  the  song  breaking  into  glittering  fragments. 
7 


142  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  It  must  be  Miss  Ludolph,"  thought  Dennis.  "  And 
can  she  sing  like  that  ?  What  an  angel  true  faith  would 
make  of  her !  O  how  could  I  over-sleep  so !  "  And  he 
dressed  in  breathless  haste.  In  going  down  to  the  second 
floor,  he  found  a  piano  open  and  new  music  upon  it, 
which  Miss  Ludolph  had  evidently  been  trying, — but  she 
was  not  there.  Yet  a  delicate  peculiar  perfume  which  the 
young  lady  always  used,  pervaded  the  place,  even  as  her 
song  had  seemed  to  pulsate  through  the  air  after  it  had 
ceased.  She  could  not  be  far  off.  Stepping  to  a  picture 
show-room  over  the  front  door,  Dennis  fouril  her  sitting 
quietly  before  a  large  painting,  sketching  one  of  the  fig- 
ures in  it. 

"  I  learned  from  Papa  that  you  were  a  very  early  riser," 
said  she  looking  up  for  a  moment,  and  then  resuming  her 
work.  "  I  fear  there  is  some  mistake  about  it.  If  we  are 
ever  to  get  through  rearranging  the  store,  you  will  have  to 
curtail  your  morning  naps." 

"  I  most  sincerely  beg  your  pardon.  I  never  over- 
slept so  before.  But  I  was  out  late  last  night,  and  passed 
through  a  most  painful  scene,  that  so  disturbed  me  that  I 
could  not  sleep  till  nearly  morning,  and  I  find  to  my  great 
vexation  that  I  have  over-slept.  I  promise  you  it  shall 
not  happen  again." 

"  I  am  not  sure  of  that,  if  you  are  out  late  in  Chicago, 
and  passing  through  painful  scenes.  I  should  say  that 
this  city  was  a  peculiarly  bad  place  for  a  young  man  to  be 
out  late  in." 

"  It  was  an  experience  wholly  unexpected  to  me,  and 
I  hope  it  may  never  occur  again.  It  was  a  scene  oi  trouble 
that  I  had  no  hand  in  making,  but  which  even  humanity 
would  not  permit  me  to  leave  at  once." 

"  Not  a  scene  of  measles  or  small-pox,  I  hope.  I  am 
toid  that  your  mission  people  are  indulging  in  these  thiogs 
most  of  the  time.  You  have  not  been  exposed  to  any 
"ontagious  disease  ? " 


MISS   LUDOLPH   MAKES   A  DISCOVERY.  143 

**  I  assure  you  I  have  not." 

"  Very  well ;  be  ready  to  assist  me  to-morrow  morning, 
for  we  have  no  slight  task  before  us,  and  I  wish  to  com- 
plete it  as  soon  as  possible.  I  shall  be  here  at  half-past 
six,  and  do  not  promise  to  sing  you  awake  every  morning. 
Were  you  not  a  little  startled  to  hear  such  unwonted 
sounds  echoing  through  the  prosaic  old  store  ?  " 

"  I  was  indeed.  At  first  I  could  not  believe  that  it 
was  a  human  voice." 

"  That  is  rather  an  equivocal  compliment." 

"  1  did  not  mean  to  speak  in  compliment  at  all,  but  to 
say  in  all  sincerity  that  I  have  seldom  heard  such  heavenly 
music." 

"  Perhaps  you  have  never  heard  very  much  of  any. 
kind,  or  else  your  imagination  overshadows  your  other 
faculties.  In  fact  I  think  it  does,  for  did  you  not  at  first 
regard  me  as  a  painted  lady  who  had  stepped  from  the 
canvas  to  the  floor  ?" 

"  I  confess  that  I  was  greatly  confused  and  startled." 

"  In  what  respect  did  you  see  such  a  close  resemb- 
lance ?" 

Dennis  hesitated. 

*'  Are  you  not  able  to  tell  ?"  asked  she. 

"Yes,"  said  Dennis  with  heightened  color,  "but  I  do 
not  like  to  say." 

"  But  I  wish  you  to  say,"  said  she  with  a  slightly  impe- 
rious tone. 

"  Well  then,  since  you  wish  me  to  speak  frankly,  it  was 
your  expression.  As  you  stood  by  the  picture  you  un- 
consciously assumed  the  look  and  manner  of  the  painted 
girl.  And  all  the  evening  and  morning  I  had  been 
troubling  over  the  picture  and  wondering  how  an  artist 
could  paint  so  lovely  a  face,  and  make  it  express  only 
scoHi  and  pride.  It  seemed  to  me  that  such  a  face  ought 
to  have  been  put  to  nobler  uses." 


144  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

Miss  Ludolph  bit  her  lip  and  looked  a  little  annoyed, 
but  turning  to  Dennis  she  said  with  some  curiosity, 

"  You  are  not  a  bit  like  Pat  Murphy.  How  did  you 
come  to  take  his  place  ?" 

"1  am  poor,  and  will  gratefully  do  any  honest  work 
rathci  than  beg  or  starve." 

'•  1  wish  all  the  poor  were  of  the  same  mind,  but  from 
the  way  they  drag  on  us  who  have  something  to  give,  I 
think  the  rule  works  usually  the  other  way.  Very  well,  that 
will  answer ;  since  you  have  asked  Papa  to  let  you  con 
tinue  to  do  Pat's  duties,  you  had  better  be  about  them, 
though  it  is  not  so  late  as  you  think,"  and  she  turned  to 
her  sketching  in  such  a  way  as  to  quietly  dismiss  him. 

She  evidently  regarded  him  with  some  interest  and  cu 
riosity  as  an  unique   specimen  of  the  genus  homo,  and 
looking  upon  him  as  a  humble  dependent,  was  inclined  to 
speak  to  him  quite  freely  and  draw  him  out  for  her  amuse- 
ment. 

On  going  down  stairs  he  saw  that  Mr.  Ludolph  was 
writing  in  his  office.  He  was  an  early  riser,  and  some- 
times entering  the  side  door  by  a  pass  key  before  the 
store  was  opened,  would  secure  an  extra  hour  for  busi- 
ness.    He  shook  his  head  at  Dennis,  but  said  nothing. 

By  movements  wonderfully  quick  and  dextrous  Dennis 
went  through  his  wonted  tasks,  and  at  eight  o'clock,  the 
usual  hour,  the  store  was  ready  for  opening. 

Mr.  Ludolph  often  caught  glimpses  of  him  as  he  dart- 
ed to  and  fro,  his  cheeks  glowing,  and  every  act  suggest- 
ing superabundant  Ufe. 

He  sighed,  and  said — 

"  After  all  that  young  fellow  is  to  be  envied.  He  is 
getting  more  out  of  existence  than  most  of  us.  He  en- 
joys everything,  and  does  even  hard  work  with  a  zest  that 
makes  it  play.  Therewill.be  no  keeping  him  down,  for 
he  seems  possessed  by  the  concentrated  vim  of  this  driv- 


MISS   LUDOLPH   MAKES   A  DISCOVERY. 


146 


ing  Yankee  nation.  Then  he  has  a  world  of  delusions  be- 
side that  seem  grand  realities.  Well,  it  is  a  sad  thing,  to 
grow  old  and  wise." 

Indeed  it  is,  in  Mr.  Ludolph's  style. 

When  Dennis  opened  the  front  door,  there  was  Ernst 
cowering  in  the  March  winds,  and  fairly  trembling  in  the 
flutter  of  his  hopes  and  fears.  Dennis  gave  him  a  hearty 
grasp  of  the  hand  and  drew  him  in,  saying — 

"  Don't  be  afraid,  I'll  take  care  of  you." 

The  boy's  heart  clung  to  him  as  the  vine  tendril  clasps 
the  oak,  and  upheld  by  Dennis'  strength,  he  entered  what 
was  to  him  wonder-land  indeed. 

Mr.  Ludolph  looked  him  over  as  he  and  his  daughter 
passed  out  on  their  return  to  breakfast,  and  said — 

"  He  will  answer  if  he  is  strong  enough." 

He  saw  nothing  in  that  child's  face  to  fear. 

Dennis  assured  him  with  a  significant  glance,  which 
Mr.  Ludolph  understood  as  referring  to  better  fare,  that 
"  he  would  grow  strong  fast  now." 

Miss  Ludolph  was  at  once  interested  in  the  boy's  pale 
face  and  large,  spiritual  eyes ;  and  she  resolved  to  sketch 
them  before  the  good  living  had  destroyed  the  artistic  effect. 

Under  kindly  instruction,  the  boy  took  readily  to  his 
duties,  and  promised  soon  to  become  very  helpful.  At 
noon  Dennis  took  him  out  to  lunch,  and  the  poor,  half- 
starved  lad  feasted  as  he  had  not  for  many  a  long  day. 

The  afternoon  mail  brought  Dennis  his  mother's  letter, 
and  he  wondered  that  her  prediction  should  be  fulfilled 
even  before  it  reached  him,  and  thus  again  his  faith  was 
braced,  and  his  confidence  in  God  increased.  He  smiled 
and  said  to  himself, 

"  Mother  lives  so  near  the  heavenly  land  that  she 
seems  to  get  the  news  thence  before  any  one  else." 

During  the  day  a  lady  who  was  talking  to  Mr.  Ludolph 
turned  and  said  to  Dennis —  • 


146  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

"  How  prettily  you  have  arranged  this  table.  Let  me 
see;  I  think  I  will  take  that  little  group  of  bronzes.  They 
make  a  very  nice  effect  together." 

Dennis  with  his  heart  swelling  that  he  had  arrived  at 
the  dignity  of  salesman,  did  them  up  quickly  and  deftly, 
and  handed  them  to  her  with  much  politeness,  which  evi- 
dently pleased  the  lady. 

Mr.  Ludolph  looked  on  as  if  all  was  a  matter  of  course 
while  she  was  present,  but  afterwards  said, 

"  You  are  on  the  right  track,  Fleet.  You  now  see  tht 
practical  result  of  a  little  thought  and  grace  in  arrange 
ment.  In  matters  of  art,  people  will  pay  almost  as  much 
for  these  as  for  the  things  themselves.  The  lady  would  not 
have  bought  those  bronzes  under  Berder's  system.  When 
things  are  grouped  rightly,  people  see  just  what  they  want, 
and  buy  the  ej^ect  as  well  as  the  articles." 

And  with  this  judicious  praise,  Mr.  Ludolph  passed 
on,  better  pleased  with  himself  even  than  Dennis. 

But  as  old  Bill  Cronk  had  intimated,  such  a  peck  of 
oats  was  almost  too  much  for  Dennis,  and  he  felt  that  he 
was  in  danger  of  becoming  too  highly  elated. 

After  closing  the  store,  he  wrote  a  brief  but  graphic 
letter  to  his  mother,  describing  his  promotion,  and  express- 
ing much  sympathy  for  poor  Berder.  Regarding  himself  on 
the  crest-wave  of  prosperity,  he  felt  a  strong  commisera- 
tion for  every  degree  and  condition  of  troubled  humanity, 
and  even  could  sigh  over  unlucky  Berder's  deserved  tribu- 
lations. 

About  eight  o'clock  he  started  to  see  his  new  friends 
in  De  Kovan  street,  and  take  his  lesson  in  painting.  They 
welcomed  him  warmly,  for  they  evidently  looked  upon  him 
as  the  rope  that  was  drawing  them  out  of  the  engulfing 
\v:i\  es  to  land. 

Tlic  clKldren  were  very  different  from  tha  clamorous 
little  wolves  of  the  night  before.     No  longer  hungry,  they 


MISS   LUDOLPH   MAKES   A  DISCOVERY.  i^-j 

viere  happy  in  the  comer,  with  some  rude  playthings,  talk 
ing  and  cooing  together  like  a  flock  of  young  hire's.  Ernst 
was  washing  up  the  tea-things,  while  his  mother  tended 
the  baby,  recalling  to  Dennis,  with  a  rush  of  tender  i.i em- 
eries, his  own  mother  and  his  boyhood  tasks.  Mr.  B:u- 
der  still  sat  in  the  dusky  corner.  The  day  had  been  a 
bitter,  hard  one  for  him.  Having  nothing  to  do  in  the 
present,  he  had  lived  the  miserable  past  over  and  over 
again.  At  times  his  strength  almost  gave  way,  but  his 
wife  would  say, 

"  Be  patient !  your  friend  Mr.   Fleet  will  be  in  soon." 

From  a  few  hints  of  what  had  passed,  Dennis  saw  the 
trouble  at  once.  Mr.  Bruder  must  have  occupation.  Aftei 
a  few  kindly  generalities,  they  two  got  together,  as  con 
genial  spirits,  before  the  rescued  picture  ;  and  soon  both 
were  absorbed  in  the  mysteries  of  the  divine  art. 

As  the  wife  looked  at  the  kindling,  interested  face  of 
her  husband,  she  murmured  to  herself  over  and  ovei 
again  like  the  sweet  refrain  of  a  song — 

"  His  artist-soul  haf  come  back  ;  it  truly  haf." 

The  lesson  that  night  could  be  no  more  than  a  talk  on 
general  principles  and  rules.  But  Mr.  Bruder  soon  found 
that  he  had  an  apt  scholar,  and  Dennis'  enthusiasm  kindled 
his  own  flagging  zeal,  and  the  artist-soul  awakening  within 
him  as  his  wife  believed,  longed  to  express  itself  as  of  old 
in  glowing  colors. 

Moreover  his  ambition  was  renewed  in  this  promising 
pupil.  Naturally  generous,  and  understanding  his  noble 
profession,  he  felt  his  poor  benumbed  heart  stir  and  glow 
at  the  thought  of  aiding  this  eager  aspirant  to  become  what 
he  had  hoped  to  be.  He  might  live  again  in  the  richer 
and  better  guided  genius  of  his  scholar. 

"  I  will  send  you  by  Ernst  in  the  morning  some  sketch- 
ing paper,  materials,  and  canvas,  and  you  can  prepare 
some  studies  for  me.     I  will  let  him  bring  some  drawings 


148  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

and  colorings  that  I  have  made  of  late  in  odd  moments, 
and  you  can  see  about  how  advanced  I  am,  and  what 
faults  I  have  fallen  into  while  groping  my  own  way.  And 
I  am  going  to  send  you  some  canvas,  too,  and  I  am  pretty 
sure  that  if  you  paint  a  picture,  Mr.  Ludolph  will  buy  it." 

The  man's  face  brightened  visibly  at  this. 

"  Will  you  let  your  friend  make  a  suggestion  ?"  con- 
dnued  Dennis. 

"  You  can  command  me,"  said  Mr.  Bruder  with  em- 
phasis. 

"  No ;  friends  never  do  that ;  but  I  would  like  to  sug 
gest  that  at  first  you  take  some  little  simple  subject,  that 
you  can  soon  finish  up,  and  leave  efforts  that  require  more 
time  for  the  future.  That  picture  there  shows  what  you 
can  do,  and  you  need  to  work  now  more  from  the  com- 
mercial standpoint  than  the  artist's." 

After  a  moment's  thought,  the  man  said, 

"  You  are  right.  As  I  look  around  dis  room,  and  see 
our  needs,  I  see  dat  you  are  right.  Do'  I  meant  to  attempt 
something  difficult  to  show  Mr.   Ludolph  vat  I  could  do." 

"  That  will  all  come  in  good  time  ;  and  now,  my  friend, 
good-night." 

The  next  day  was  far  more  tolerable  for  poor  Bruder, 
because  occupied,  and  he  found  it  much  easier  to  resist 
the  clamors  of  appetite. 

Dennis's  sketches  interested  him  greatly,  for  though 
they  showed  the  natural  defects  of  one  who  had  received 
little  instruction,  there  was  both  power  and  originality  in 
their  execution. 

"  He,  too,  can  be  an  artist,  if  he  vill,"  was  his  emphatic 
comment  after  looking  them  over. 

lie  prepared  one  study,  to  be  continued  under  his  own 
eye,  and  another  for  Dennis  to  work  at  alone. 

Afterwards  he  sat  down  to  something  for  himself.  He 
thought  a  few  moments,  and  then  outlined  rapidly  as  his 


WHAT  IS   THE  MATTER  WITH  HIM. 


149 


subject,  the  figure  of  a  man  dashing  a  wine  glass  to  the 
ground. 

As  he  worked,  his  wife  smiled  encouragement  to  him 
as  of  old,  and  often  looked  upward  in  thankfulness  to 
heaven. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

WHAT  IS  THE  MATTER  WITH  HIM  ? 

The  sun  was  just  tinging  the  eastern  horizon  with  light 
when  Dennis  sprang  from  his  bed  on  the  following  morn- 
ing.  He  vowed  that  Miss  Ludolph  should  never  have 
cause  to  complain  of  him  again  ;  for,  great  as  was  the 
luxury  of  being  wakened  by  such  exquisite  music,  it  was 
one  that  he  could  not  afford. 

It  must  be  confessed  that  he  gave  a  little  more  care 
than  usual  that  morning  to  his  toilet.  But  his  resources 
were  very  limited;  still,  as  nature  had  doiie  so  much  for 
him,  he  could  not  complain.  By  half  past  six  his  duties 
in  the  store  were  accomplished,  and  brushed  and  fur- 
nished up  as  far  as  possible,  he  stood  outside  the  door 
awaiting  his  fair  task-mistress.  Sometimes  he  wondered 
at  the  strange  fascination  she  exercised  over  him,  but  gen- 
erally ended  by  ascribing  it  to  her  beauty  and  love  of  art. 

A  little  after  the  time  appointed  she  appeared  with  her 
father,  and  seemed  pleased  at  Dennis'  readiness  for  work. 

"  I  shall  not  have  to  sing  you  awake  this  morning,' 
she  said,  "  and  I  am  glad,  for  I  am  in  a  mood  for  busi- 
ness." 

She  was  attired  in  a  close-fitting  walking-dress  that  set 
off  her  graceful  person  finely.     It  was  evident  that  her 
energetic  nature  would  permit  no  statuesque  repose  while 
7* 


150  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY". 

Dennis  worked,  but  that  she  had  come  prepared  for  active 
raeasures. 

She  had  inherited  a  good  constitution,  which^under  hef 
father's  direction,  had  been  strengtiiened  and  confirmed 
by  due  regard  to  hygienic  rules.  Therefore  she  had 
reached  the  stage  of  early  womanhood  abounding  in 
vitality  and  capable  of  great  endurance.  Active,  grace- 
ful motion  was  as  natural  to  her,  as  for  a  swallow  to  be 
on  the  wing.  The  moment  she  dropped  her  book,  pallet, 
or  pencil,  she  was  on  her  feet,  her  healthful  nature  seeming 
like  a  mountain  brook,  that  checked  for  a  time  in  its  flow, 
soon  overleaps  its  bounds  and  speeds  on  swifter  than 
ever.  But  the  strange  part  of  this  super-abundant  activi- 
ty was,  that  she  never  seemed  to  do  anything  in  an  abrupt 
way,  as  from  mere  impulse.  Every  act  glided  into  anoth- 
er as  smoothly  and  gracefully  as  the  undulations  of  a  ser- 
pent. Her  lithe  willowy  figure,  neither  slight  nor  stout, 
was  peculiarly  adapted  to  her  style  of  movement.  She 
delighted  in  the  game  of  billiards,  for  the  quick  move- 
ments and  varied  attitudes  permitted,  and  the  precision 
required,  were  all  suited  to  her  taste;  and  she  had  gained 
such  marvellous  skill  that  even  her  father,  with  his  prac- 
tised hand,  was  scarcely  her  match. 

As  she  tripped  lightly  on  before  up  the  long  winding 
stairs  to  the  show-room  over  the  front  door  where  their 
labors  were  to  commence,  she  appeared  to  Dennis  the 
very  embodiment  of  grace  and  beaut^'.  And  yet  she 
seemed  so  cold  and  self-centered,  so  devoid  of  warm 
human  interest  in  the  great  world  of  love,  joy,  and  suffer- 
ing, Uiat  she  repelled  while  she  fascinated. 

•  It  the  blood  should  come  into  the  cheeks  of  one  of 
her  father's  statues,  and  the  white  marble  eyes  turn  to 
wolet  blue,  and  the  snowy  hair  to  wavy  gold,  and  it  should 
spting  from  its  pedestal  into  just  such  life,  it  would  be 
more  like  her  than  any  woman  I  ever  saw,"  thought  Den- 


WHAT  IS  THE   MATTER  WITH  HIM? 


iS» 


nis  as  he  stood  for  a  moment  or  two  waiting  to  do  her 
bidding. 

Her  plans  had  been  pretty  thoroughly  matured  and 
she  acted  with  decision.  Pointing  to  tTie  side  ^opposite 
the  door  at  which  they  had  entered,  and  which  would 
naturally  strike  the  eye  of  the  visitor  first,  she  said,  "I 
wish  all  the  pictures  taken  down  from  that  side  and  placed 
around  the  room  so  that  I  can  see  them."  • 

She  commenced  as  an  absolute  dictator,  intending  to 
give  no  hint  of  her  plans  and  purposes  except  as  con- 
veyed by  clear  terse  orders.  But  these  had  so  intelligent 
and  appreciative  an  interpreter  in  Dennis,  that  gradually 
her  attention  was  drawn  to  him  as  well  as  to  his  work. 

He  had  his  step-ladder  ready,  and  with  a  celerity  de- 
cidedly pleasing,  soon  placed  the  pictures  safely  on  the 
floor,  so  that  she  could  still  see  them  and  judge  of  their 
character.  Though  his  quick  dextrous  manner  and  care- 
ful handling  of  the  pictures  were  gratifying,  it  must  be 
confessed  that  his  supple  form,  the  graceful  and  varied 
attitudes  he  unconsciously  assumed  in  his  work,  pleased 
her  more,  and  she  secretly  began  to  study  him  as  an 
artistic  subject,  as  he  had  studied  her. 

In  her  complacency  she  said — 

"  So  far,  very  well,  Mr.  Fleet.  I  congratulate  myself 
that  I  have  you  to  assist  me,  instead  of  that  awkward 
cheat  of  a  Berder." 

"  And  I  assure  you,  Miss  Ludolph,  that  I  have  longed 
intensely  for  this  privilege  ever  since  I  knew  your  pur- 
pose." 

"  You  may  have  cause  to  repent,  like  many  another 
whose  wishes  have  been  gratified,  for  your  privilege  will 
involve  a  great  deal  of  hard  work." 

'*  The  more  the  better,"  said  Dennis  warmly 

"  How  so  ?  I  should  think  you  had  more  to  do  now 
than  you  would  care  about." 


152 


BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 


"AVork  is  no  burden  to  one  of  my  years  and  strength, 
provided  it  is  suited  to  one's  tastes.  Moreover,  I  confess 
that  I  hope  to  derive  great  advantages  from  this  labor." 

"In  what  way  ?"  she  asked  with  a  sh'ght  frown,  imagin- 
ing him  thinking  of  extra  pay. 

"  Because  unconsciously  you  will  give  me  instruction, 
and  1  hope  that  you  are  not  unwilling  that  I  should  gain 
such  hints  and  suggestions  as  I  can  from  the  display  of 
your  taste  that  I  must  witness." 

"  Not  at  all;"  said  she  laughing,  "  I  see  that  you  are 
ambitious  to  learn  your  business  and  rise  in  the  store." 

"  I  am  ambitious  to  gain  a  knowledge  of  one  of  the 
noblest  callings." 

"  What  is  that  ?" 

"  Art." 

"AVhat!"  said  she  with  a  half-scornful  smile,  "are 
you  a  disciple  of  art  ?" 

"  Yes  ;  why  not  ?" 

"Well,  I  do  not  wish  to  hurt  your  feelings,  but  to  tell 
you  the  honest  truth,  it  seems  but  the  other  day  that  you 
were  Pat  Murphy." 

"  But  am  I  a  Pat  Murphy  ?"  he  asked  with  gentle  dig- 
nity. 

"  No,  Mr.  Fleet.  I  will  do  you  the  justice  to  say  that 
I  think  you  very  much  above  your  station." 

"  I  am  sufficiently  a  democrat.  Miss  Ludolph,  to  be- 
lieve that  a  man  can  be  a  ma7i  in  any  honest  work." 

"  And  I,  Mr.  Fleet,  am  not  in  the  least  degree  a  demo- 
crat." 

Which  fact  she  proceeded  to  prove  by  ordering  him 
about  foi  the  next  hour  like  the  most  absolute  little  despot 
ihat  ever  queened  it  over  a  servile  province  in  the  dark 
ages.  But  it  was  rather  difficult  to  keep  up  this  style  of 
dictatorship  with  Dennis.  He 'seemed  so  intelligent  and 
polite  that  she  often  had  it  on  her  tongue  to  ask  his  opin 


WHAT  IS   THE  MATTER  WITH   HIM  ? 


153 


ion  on  certain  points.  Toward  the  last  she  did  so,  and 
the  opinion  he  gave,  she  admitted  to  herself,  was  judici- 
ous; but  for  a  purpose  of  her  own  she  disregarded  it,  and 
took  a  different  way. 

Dennis  at  once  saw  through  her  plan  of  arrangements. 
In  the  centre  of  that  side  of  the  room  which  he  had 
cleared,  she  caused  him  to  hang  one  of  the  largest  and 
finest  pictures,  which,  under  Mr.  Swartz's  management  had 
been  placed  in  a  corner.  Around  the  central  painting  all 
the  others  were  to  be  grouped,  accorcling  to  color,  subject, 
and  merit.  At  the  same  time  each  wall  was  to  have  a 
character  of  its  own.  Such  a  task  as  this  would  require 
no  little  thought,  study  and  comparison  ;  and  Miss  Lu- 
dolph  was  one  to  see  delicate  points  of  difference,  which 
most  observers  would  not  notice.  It  was  her  purpose  to 
make  the  room  bloom  out  naturally  like  a  great  flower. 
This  careful  selection  of  pictures  was  necessarily  slow, 
and  Dennis  rejoiced  that  their  mutual  work  would  not 
soon  be  over. 

To  her  surprise  she  often  saw  his  eyes  instinctively 
turning  to  the  same  picture  that  she  was  about  to  select, 
and  perceived  that  he  had  divined  her  plan  without  a  word 
of  explanation,  and  that  his  taste  was  constantly  accord- 
ing with  hers  in  producing  the  desired  effects.  Though 
all  this  tilled  her  with  astonishment,  she  revealed  no  sign 
of  it  to  him.     At  eight  she  said — 

■"  That  will  do  for  to-day ;  we  have  made  a  good  begin- 
ning, better  indeed  than  I  had  hoped.  But  how  is  it,  Mr. 
Fleet,  since  you  are  such  an  uncompromising  democrat, 
you  permit  a  young  lady  to  order  you  about  in  this  style  ?" 

Dennis  smiled  and  said — 

"  It  seems  perfectly  natural  for  you  to  sptak  in  this 
way,  and  it  does  not  appear  offensive  as  it  mi^nt  in  an- 
other.     Moreover  I  have  voluntarily  taken  thi^;  position 
and  am  honor-bound  to  accept  all  it  involves." 


154 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


"  But  which  was  the  controlling  motive  of  your  mind?" 

"  Well,  a  few  seem  born  to  command,  and  it  is  a  pleas- 
ure to  obey,"  said  Dennis,  paying  a  strong  but  honest 
compliment  to  the  natural  little  autocrat. 

"Indeed,  Mr.  Fleet,  do  church  members  flatter.-"'  said 
she,  secretly  much  pleased. 

"  I  did  not  mean  to  flatter,"  said  he  flushing.  "  They 
who  have  power  should  use  it  like  the  All-powerful — 
gently,  considerately." 

It  was  her  turn  to  flush  now,  and  she  said, 

"  O,  I  perceive,  the  compliment  was  the  sugar-coatmg 
of  the  little  homily  to  follow." 

"  I  have  no  such  diplomacy  as  you  credit  me  with," 
said  Dennis,  looking  straight  into  her  eyes  with  honest 
frankness.     "I  merely  spoke  my  passing  thought." 

"  But  he  has  fine  eyes,"  said  she  to  herself,  and  then 
she  said  to  him, 

"  Very  well,  I  certainly  will  give  you  credit  for  being 
very  different  from  poor  old  Pat.  Be  ready  again  to- 
morrow at  the  same  hour,"  and  with  a  smile  somewhat 
kindly  she  vanished. 

Somehow  to  Dennis  she  seemed  to  take  the  light  out 
of  the  room  with  her.  The  pictures  suddenly  looked 
tame  and  ordinary,  and  everything  commonplace.  Here 
was  an  effect  not  exactly  artistic,  which  he  could  not  im- 
derstand.     He  sighed,  he  scarcely  knew  why. 

But  the  day's  duties  came  with  a  rush,  and  soon  he 
was  utterly  absorbed  in  them. 

That  evening  Dennis  was  much  cheered  by  Mr.  Bru- 
der's  comments  on  his  sketches. 

"  Considering  de  advantages  you  haf  had,  and  de  lit- 
tle time  you  can  give,  dey  are  very  goot.  You  haf  fallen 
into  de  natural  faults  of  dose  w'ho  work  alone,  but  ve  can 
soon  cure  dese.  Now  here  is  some  vork  on  coloring  dat 
I  vont  you  to  do  under  my  eye,  and  dat  study  on  outlining 


WHAT  IS   THE  MATTER  WITH   HIM  ? 


155 


you  can  take  home.  Moreover,  I  can  give  you  some  les- 
sons "'n  outlining  from  my  own  picture."  And  Mr.  Bru- 
der  showed  him  wha-t  he  had  done. 

Dennis  saw  in  the  clear  vigorous  profile  the  artist's 
thought,  and  congratulated  himself  that  his  teacher  was  a 
master  in  his  profession. 

For  two  hours  they  worked  and  talked,  and  Dennis  felt 
that  every  such  lesson  would  be  a  long  step  forward. 

Poor  Bruder  looked  more  and  more  like  himself  every 
day,  but  God  only  knew  how  he  had  to  struggle. 
»       "  I  don't  know  how    him  vill  end,"  he  said.     "  I  pray 
nearly    every  minute,  but   sometimes    I    feel    dat  I  must 
drink  even  do'  I  die  dat  moment." 

It  was  disease  as  well  as  appetite  that  he  was  fighting, 
for  appetite  indulged  beyond  a  certain  point  becomes  dis- 
ease. 

His  wife's  face  was  different  also — the  sharp  look  of 
misery  fading  out  of  it.  Dennis  noticed  the  changes,  and 
thought  to  himself  while  walking  home, 

"  After  all,  the  highest  art  is  the  bringing  out  on  the 
living  face  all  we  can  of  God's  lost  image.  How  beauti- 
ful the  changes  in  these  two  poor  people's  faces,  and  the 
best  part  of  it  is,  that  they  are  the  reflex  of  changes  go- 
ing on  in  the  soul,  the  imperishable  part." 

Then  in  quick  and  natural  transition,  his  mind  reverted 
to  Christine  Ludolph,  and  the  thought  of  her  face,  which 
God  had  fashioned  so  fairly,  but  which  was  already  sadly 
marred  by  sin,  becoming  fixed  and  rigid  in  pride  and  self- 
ishness, was  as  painful  as  if,  according  to  an  old  legend, 
her  lithe,  active  form  should  gradually  turn  to  stone.  But 
if  the  reverse  could  ever  be  true,  if  the  beautifying  Chris- 
tian graces  could  dwell  within  her  soul  and  light  up  her 
face,  as  lamps  some  rare  and  quaint  transparency,  there 
would  then  be  a  loveliness  that  would  realize  the  artist's 
fondest  ideal. 


156  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

Musing  thus,  what  wonder  that  he  vowed  then  and 
there,  under  the  starlight,  to  pray  and  work  for  her  till 
the  new  life  should  illumine  her  heart.  Little  dreamed 
Christine  as  she  slept  that  night,  that  the  first  link  of  a 
chain  that  might  bind  her  to  heaven,  had  been  forged. 

The  dawn  was  late  and  lowering,  the  following  morn- 
ing. Great  masses  of  clouds  swept  across  the  sky,  and 
soon  the  rain  was  falling  in  gusty  torrents.  Dennis  rose 
and  hastened  through  his  duties  as  before,  and  was  ready 
at  the  hour  appointed,  but  had  little  hope  of  seeing  Miss 
Ludolph  that  morning.  Still  he  opened  the  door  and 
looked  up  the  street.  To  his  surprise  he  saw  her  coming, 
attended  by  her  father's  valet.  Only  part  of  her  glowing 
face  was  visible,  for  she  was  encased  from  head  to  foot  in 
a  light  and  delicate  suit  of  rubber. 

Dennis  opened  the  door,  and  she  stepped  quickly  in, 
scattering  spray  on  every  side  like  a  sea-nymph.  Dennis 
looked  at  her  with  open-eyed  admiration  and  surprise, 
which  both  amused  and  pleased  her. 

"  True  enough,"  she  thought,  "  his  face  is  like  a  sign 
board." 

She  seemed  to  him  as  she  threw  off  her  wet  coverings, 
like  an  exquisite   flower,  that,  the  breeze  lifting  after  a' 
storm,  scatters  the  burdensome  rain  drops  on  every  side^ 
and  stands  up  more  beautiful  and  blooming  than  ever. 
•  "  You  were  not  expecting  me,  I  imagine,"  she  said. 

Well  I  must  admit  I  scarcely  did,  and  yet  I  could  not 
help  looking  for  you." 

"  Isnt  that  a  distinction  without  a  difference  ?"  she 
asked. with  a  pleasant  smile,  for  she  was  pleased  at  not 
finding  the  store  closed  and  dark. 

"  1  am  very  glad  you  have  come,"  he  replied,  fluiihing 
slightly  with  pleasure,  "  for  it  would  have  been  a  long, 
dreary  morning  if  you  haJ  not." 

Dennis  thought  he  referred  to  the  lack  of  occupation 


IS   HE   A   GENTLEMAN? 


157 


He  did  not  know,  nor  did  she  notice  that  he  meant  the 
lack  of  herself. 

"  Well,"  said  she,  "  I  am  glad  you  like  the  work,  for 
you  are  destined  to  enough  of  it." 


CHAPTER  XXII. 

IS    HE   A    GENTLEMAN? 

The  days  and  weeks  that  followed  were  to  Dennis  such 
as  only  come  once  in  a  lifetime,  and  not  in  every  lifetime 
either.  A  true,  pure  love  was  growing  up  within  his  heart 
— growing  as  the  little  child  developes  in  strength  and 
pleasurable  life,  and  yet  unconsciously  to  itself.  It  seemed 
as  if  some  strong  magician's  wand  had  touched  the  world 
or  him-.  Everything  was  transfigured,  and  no  wonder-land 
was  more  full  of  interest  than  that  in  which  he  existed. 
His  life  was  a  waking  dream,  in  which  nothing  was  distinct 
or  definite,  but  all  things  abounded  in  hope  and  happy 
suggestion.  He  compared  them  afterwards  to  a  tropical 
island  of  the  Pacific,  a  blissful  fragment  of  life  by  itself, 
utterly  distinct  from  the  hard  struggling  years  that  pre- 
ceded, and  the  painful  awakening  that  followed. 

Even  the  place  of  his  daily  toil  was  pervaded  by  a 
beautiful  presence.  For  many  days  he  and  Christine 
worked  together,  and  at  last  her  eyes  had  rested  on,  and 
her  fingers  touched  nearly  everything  in  the  store,  and 
therefore  all  was  associated  with  her.  Throughout  their 
labors  his  quick  sympathy  and  appreciation,  made  him  al- 
most hands  and  feet  to  her,  and  she  regarded  him  as  a 
miracle  of  helpfulness — one  of  those  humble,  useful  crea- 
tures who  was  born  to  wait  upon  and  interpret  the  wishes 
of  the  rich  and  great.    His  admiring  glances  disturbed 


C58  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY, 

her  not,  nor  raised  any  suspicion  in  her  mind — she  had 
been  accustomed  to  these  for  years,  and  took  them  as  a 
matter  of  course. 

She  treated  the  young  men  whom  she  met  in  society 
with  a  courtly  ease  and  freedom,  but  her  smiles  and  rep- 
artee ever  seemed  like  brilliant  moonlight  that  had  no 
warmth ;  and  while  no  restraint  appeared,  she  still  kept  all 
at  a  distance.  There  was  a  marked  difference  in  her  in- 
tercourse with  Dennis. 

Regarding  him  as  too  humble  to  ever  presume  upon 
her  frankness,  she  daily  spoke  more  freely,  and  more  truly 
acted  out  herself  before  him.  She  was  happy  and  in  her  ele- 
ment among  the  beautiful  works  of  art  they  were  arrang- 
ing, and  in  this  atmosphere  her  womanly  nature,  chilled 
and  dwarfed  though  it  was,  would  often  manifest  itself  in 
ways  as  sweet  as  unexj^cted.  Under  no  other  circum- 
stances could  she  have  appeared  as  well.  She  as  often 
ipoke  to  herself  in  racy  comment  on  what  was  before  her, 
as  to  Dennis,  and  ever  and  anon  would  make  some  pleas- 
ant remark  to  him,  as  she  might  throw  a  dainty  morsel  to 
her  greyhound,  Wolf,  as  he  looked  wistfully  at  her  while 
she  dined.  At  the  same  time  it  must  be  confessed  that 
she  had  a  growing  respect  for  him,  as  she  daily  saw  some 
new  proof  of  intelligence  and  taste  but  both  education 
and  disposition  inclined  her  instinctively  to  the  old  feudal 
idea  that  even  genius,  if  poor,  must  wait  a  humble  servitor 
on  wealth  and  rank,  and  where  a  New  England  girl  would 
have  been  saying  to  herself  "  This  gifted,  educated  man  is 
my  equal,  and  whether  I  want  to  or  not,  I  ought  to  treat 
hun  as  such,"  she  was  not  troubled  at  all.  To  her,  he  was 
her  father's  clerk  and  nian-of-all-work,  a  most  useful,  trust- 
ed and  agreeable  servant,  and  as  such  she  was  kind  to 
him,  as  the  little  Autocrat  was  to  every  one  that  pleased 
her.  She  was  a  benign  queen  to  obedient  subjects,  but 
woe  unto  them  if  otherwise. 


IS   HE   A   GENTLEMAN? 


159 


To  Dennis,  however,  though  he  reaUzed  it  not,  she  was 
becoming  as  the  very  apple  of  his  eye.  He  was  learning 
to  regurd  her  with  a  deeper  interest  because  of  the  very 
defects  that  he  plainly  recognized.  While  on  the  one  hand 
he  had  the  enthusiastic  love  of  admiration,  on  the  other 
he  felt  the  tenderer  and  greater  love  of  pity.  He  tried  to 
accour  t  for  his  feelings  toward  her  by  the  usual  sophis- 
tries of  unconscious  lovers.  It  was  friendship;  it  was  ar- 
tistic interest  in  her  beauty;  it  was  the  absorbing  unselfish 
regard  of  a  Christian  for  one  providentially  and  specially 
commended  to  him  to  lead  out  of  darkness  into  light. 
How  could  he  help  thinking  of  one  for  whom  he  prayed 
night  and  morning  and  every  hour  in  the  day  ?  It  was  all 
this,  but  he  was  soon  to  learn  that  it  was  a  great  deal  more. 
And  so  the  days  df  work  and  companionship  passed  ;  the 
spell  worked  on  with  increasing  and  bewildering  power, 
and  the  crisis  could  not  be  delayed  much  longer. 

One  morning,  the  latter  part  of  April,  she  seemed  more 
gracious  than  usual.  Their  labors  were  drawing  to  a  close, 
and  as  he  had  proved  so  tasteful  and  efficient  in  the  store, 
she  concluded  that  he  might  be  equally  useful  in  other 
ways  and  places.  She  could  command  him  at  the  store,  but 
not  in  respect  to  a  task  that  she  had  in  view  ;  so  she  adopted 
a  little  feminine  artifice  as  old  as  the  time  that  Eve  handed 
Adam  the  apple,  and  looked  at  him  in  such  a  way  that  he 
could  not  refuse. 

Blind  honest  Dennis  of  course  saw  nothing  of  this  little 
strategy  of  which  he  was  destined  to  be  the  happy  willing 
victim,  and  his  love  expanded  and  bloomed  under  the 
genial  fight  of  her  presenceand  kindness  like  the  flowers 
of  the  convolvulus  in  a  bright  dawn  of  June.  She  brought 
her  general  graciousness  to^  definite  and  blissful  cfimax 
b)"  saying  when  about  to  leave — 

"  Well,  Mr.  Fleet,  you  have  done  better  than  usual  to- 
day, and  I  certainly  must  give  you  credit  for  possessing 
more  taste  than  any  young  man  of  my  acquaintance." 


l6o  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY.  * 

Dennis's  heart  gave  as  great  a  bound  as  if  the  laurel 
crown  of  all  the  Olympic  games  had  been  placed  upon  his 
brow. 

"  I  am  now  going  to  ask  a  favor,"  she  continued. 

"  You  may  command  me,  Miss  Ludolph,"  interrupted 
Dennis. 

''  No,  not  in  this  case,"  she  replied,  "  Whatever  you 
do  will  be  regarded  as  a  personal  favor  to  me.  At  the  same 
time  it  will  afford  you  scope  for  such  display  of  your  taste 
as  will  secure  many  compUments." 

"  If  I  am  able  to  satisfy  you  I  shall  be  more  than  com- 
pensated," said  Dennis  with  a  bow. 

She  smiled  and  thought  to  herself,  "  That  isn't  bad  for 
Pat  Murphy's  successor,"  and  explained  as  follows  : 

Some  yoiing  ladies  and  gentlemen  have  decided  upon 
giving  a  rare  and  elegant  entertainment,  consisting  of  mu- 
sic, tableaux,  and  statuary.  Now  in  regard  to  the  two  lat- 
ter parts,  we  need  above  all  things  some  person  of  taste 
like  yourself,  whose  critical  eye  and  dexterous  hand  will 
ensure  every  thing  to  be  just  right.  You  will  be  a  sort  of 
general  stage  manager  and  superintendent,  you  know.  I 
feel  sure  you  will  be  all  the  more  willing  to  enter  upon  this 
work  when  you  know  that  the  proceeds  are  to  go  towards 
the  Church  of  the  Holy  Virgin.  This  is  going  to  be  a 
very  select  affair,  and  the  tickets  are  five  dollars  each. 

"  Is  it  a  Protestant  church  ?  "  asked  Dennis  in  some 
trepidation. 

"  O  certainly,"  she  answered  with  a  peculiar  smile,  "  an 
Episcopal  church." 

"  It  seems  a  strange  name  for  a  Protestant  church," 
said  Dennis.  "  It  is  enough  for  me  that  you  wish  it;  at 
the  same  time  it  certainly  is  ^i  pleasure  to  contribute  what 
Utile  I  can  towards  any  Christian  organization." 

"  Come,  ]Mr.  Fleet,  you  are  narrow,"  she  said  with  a 
controversial  twinkle  in  her  eye.  "  Why  not  towards  a 
Catholic  church  ?  " 


IS   HE  A   GENTLEMAN?  i6i 

"  I  fear  that  all  people  with  decided  religious  opinions 
are  sometimes  regarded  as  narrow,"  he  answered  with  a 
smile. 

"  That  is  an  inadequate  answer  to  my  question,"  she 
said,  "but  I  will  not  find  fault  since  you  have  so  good-na- 
turedly acceded  to  my  request.  Come  to  No.  —  Wabash 
avenue  at  three  this  afternoon.  Papa  gives  you  a  leave  of 
absence." 

She  vanished,  and  figuratively  the  sun  went  down  to 
Dennis,  and  he  was  in  twilight  till  he  should  see  her  again. 
He  looked  forward  to  the  afternoon  with  almost  feverish 
eagerness,  for  several  reasons.  It  would  be  his  first  intro- 
duction to  "  good  society,"  for  as  such  the  unsophisticated 
youth  regarded  his  invitation.  He  had  the  natural  longing 
of  a  young,  healthful  nature  for  companionship  of  those 
of  his  own  age  and  culture,  and  his  life  in  the  greai  city 
had  often  been  very  lonely.  He  expected  to  be  treated 
as  an  equal  as  a  matter  of  course,  at  the  artistic  entertain- 
ment in  which  he  was  to  participate.  In  his  business  re- 
lations at  the  store  he  had  taken  a  subordinate  position 
and  made  up  his  mind  to  the  logical  consequences.  But 
now  that  he  was  invited  to  a  private  house,  and  would  ap- 
pear, there  possessing  all  the  qualities  of  a  gentleman,  he 
surely  would  be  treated  as  one. 

"  Is  not  this  Chicago,  where  nearly  all  its  citizens  were 
poor  a  few  years  ago  ?  "  he  thought ;  "  and  surely  if  what 
Miss  Ludolph  says  is  true,  I  have  advantages  in  my  taste 
over  most  poor  young  men." 

Moreover  it  was  his  ideal  of  an  entertainment,  where 
art  and  music  should  take  the  place  of  the  coarser  pleas- 
uies  of  eating,  drinking,  and  dancing. 

Chief  of  all,  Christine  would  be  there,  and  even  he  in 
his  blindness  became  a  little  uneasy  and  self-conscious  as 
he  realized  how  this  thought  towered  above  the  others. 

She  had  given  him  a  list  of  the  things  he  was  to  bring 


l62  CARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

with  him  in  the  afternoon,  and  he  occupied  every  S])are 
moment  in  getting  them  ready.  At  quarter  past  two  he 
summoned  the  carman  of  the  store  and  they  loaded  up 
the  miscellaneous  cargo  needed  for  the  coming  mysteries, 
and  by  three,  all  were  before  the  large  elegant  mansion  to 
which  he  had  been  directed.  Dennis  rang  the  bell  and 
v/as  shown  by  a  servant  into  the  front  parlor,  where  he 
found  Miss  Ludolph,  Miss  Brown,  a  tall,  haughty  brunette 
and  the  young  lady  of  the  house,  Miss  Winthrop,  a  bright, 
sunny  faced  blonde,  and  two  or  three  other  young  ladies 
of  no  special  coloring  in  character,  being  indebted  mainly 
to  their  toilets  for  their  attractions. 

Dennis  bowed  to  Miss  Ludolph,  and  then  turned  to- 
ward the  other  ladies  as  if  expecting  as  a  matter  of  course 
to  be  introduced.  No  introduction  came,  but  his  expect- 
ant manner  was  so  obvious,  that  M>iss  Ludolph  colored, 
looked  annoyed,  and  the  young  ladies  tittered  outright. 

Advancing  a  step  or  two  she  said  coldly,  "  Mr.  Fleet, 
you  may  help  Mapes  carry  the  things  into  the  back  parlor, 
and  then  we  will  direct  you  as  to  the  arrangement." 

Dennis  crimsoned  painfully.  At  first  he  was  too  con- 
fused to  think,  and  merely  obeyed  mechanically.  Then 
came  the  impulse  to  say  boldly  that  this  kind  of  thing  rnight 
answer  at  the  store,  but  not  here,  and  he  nearly  carried  it 
out :  but  soon  followed  the  sober  second  thought  that  such 
action  would  bring  a  blight  over  all  his  prospects,  and  in- 
volve the  loss  of  his  position  at  the  store.  Such  giving 
way  to  passion  would  injure  only  himself  They  would 
laugh,  and  merely  sufter  a  momentary  annoyance;  to  him 
and  his  the  result  would  be  most  disastrous.  Why  should 
he  let  those  who  cared  not  a  jot  for  him  cause  such  sad 
injury  ? 

V>y  the  time  he  had  carried  his  first  armful  into  the 
back  parlor,  he  had  resolved  for  his  mother  and  sisters' 
Bakes  that  he  would  go  through  the  following  scenes  as 


IS  HE   A   GENTLEMAN?  163 

well  as  he  could,  and  then  turn  his  back  on  society  till  he 
could  enter  it  a  recognized  gentleman ;  and  with  com- 
pressed lips  and  flashing  eye  he  mentally  vowed  that  that 
day  should  soon  come. 

As  he  was  unpacking  his  materials  he  could  not  help 
hearing  the  conversation  in  the  front  parlor. 

"Did  you  ever  see  such  presumption?"  exclaimed 
Miss  Brown,  "  He  evidently  expected  to  be  introduced, 
and  that  we  should  rise  and  courtesy  all  around." 

"  He  must  have  seen  better  days,  for  he  certainly  ap- 
peared like  a  gentleman,"  said  Miss  Winthrop. 

*'  I  should  hardly  give  that  title  to  a  man  who  swept  a 
store  out  every  morning,"  replied  Miss  Brown. 

"  No  indeed !  "  chorused  the  three  colorless  young 
ladies. 

"  I  know  nothing  about  this  young  man,"  said  Miss 
Winthrop  ruffling  her  plumage  somewhat  for  an  argument, 
of  which  she  was  fond,  "  but  as  a  case  in  hand,  suppose 
a  highly  educated  and  refined  man  for  some  reason  swept 
a  store  out  every  morning — what  would  you  call  him?" 
And  she  looked  around  as  if  she  had  given  a  poser. 

The  colorless  young  ladies  looked  blank — their  natu- 
ral expression. 

"  Nonsense,"  said  the  positive  Miss  Brown,  "  such 
men  don't  sweep  stores.  He  may  have  passed  current  in 
some  country  village,  but  that  is  not  our  set." 

"  But  the  case  is  certainly  supposable,"  retorted  Miss 
Winthrop,  more  intent  upon  her  argument  than  Dennis. 
"  Come,  what  does  the  Countess  say  ?  "  she  asked,  turning 
to  Christine,  for  that  was  the  familiar  name  by  which  she 
went  among  her  young  companions. 

"  The  case  is  not  supposable,  but  actual"  she  answered, 
so  distinctly  that  it  seemed  that  she  meant  Dennis  to  hear. 
•'  As  far  as  I  have  any  means  of  judging  he  is  a  refined, 
educated  man,  and  I  have  learned  from  papa  that  his 


l64  BARRIERS   BURNED  AWAY. 

motive  in  sweeping  the  store  is  the  support  of  his  mother 
and  sisters — certainly  a  very  worthy  one.  To  your  ques- 
tion, Susie,  I  answer  unhesitatingly  that  in  accordance  with 
your  American  principles  and  professions  he  is  a  gentle- 
man, and  you  ought  to  treat  him  as  such.  But  you  Ameri- 
cans are  sometimes  wonderfully  inconsistent,  and  there  is 
often  a  marvellously  wide  margin  between  your  boasted 
equality  and  the  reality.  Now  in  Europe  these  questions 
have  been  settled  for  ages,  and  birth  and  rank  define  a 
person's  position  accurately." 

"I  neither  boast  nor  believe  in  equality,"  said  Miss 
Brown  with  a  toss  of  her  head.  (Her  father  was  a  mighty 
brewer,  but  he  and  his  were  in  character  and  antecedents 
something  like  the  froth  on  their  own  beer.  All  they  had 
and  were  had  but  recently  come  out  of  the  hops.) 

Miss  Winthrop  was  a  little  embarrassed  at  finding  her 
supposable  case  a  real  one,  for  it  might  involve  some  prac- 
tical action  on  her  part.  Many  an  ardent  advocate  of  the 
people  in  theory  practically  give  them  the  cold  shoulder, 
and  are  content  to  stay  on  the  summit  of  Mt.  Olympus. 
She  was  a  girl  of  good  impulses  and  strong  convictions  of 
abstract  right,  but  never  had  either  the  courage  or  much 
opportunity  to  carry  them  out.  She  was  of  the  old  Boston 
family  of  Winthrops,  and  therefore  could  meet  Miss  Lu- 
dolph  on  her  own  ground  in  the  way  of  pedigree. 

But  however  Dennis  fared  she  felt  that  she  must  look 
after  her  argument,  and  having  conquered  theoretically  as 
far  as  America  was  concerned,  determined  to  carry  war 
into  Europe,  so  she  said — 

"Are  you  not  mistaken  in  saying  that  birth  and  rank 
only  settle  position  abroad  ?  Some  of  the  most  honored 
names  there,  are  or  were  untitled." 

"O  certainly,  but  they  were  persons  of  great  genius, 
and  ^'oiins  is  tlie  highest  patent  of  nobility.  But  I  leave 
you  republicans  to  settle  this  question  to  suit  yourseh'cs. 


CHRISTINE'S  IDEA  OF   CHRISTIANS. 


i6S 


I  am  going  to  look  after  the  preparations  for  this  evening, 
as  I  have  set  my  heart  on  a  success  that  shall  ring  through 
the  city." 

But  they  all  flocked  after  her  into  the  back  parlor,  now 
doubly  interesting  as  it  contained  an  object  of  curiosity 
in  Dennis  Fleet — a  veritable  gentleman  who  swept  a  store. 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 
Christine's  idea  of  christians. 

The  large  apartment  where  the  amateur  performers 
expected  to  win  their  laurels  was  now  filled  with  all  the 
paraphernalia  needed  to  produce  musical,  artistic,  and 
stage  effects.  Much  had  been  gathered  before  Dennis's 
arrival,  and  his  cart-lpad  added  all  that  was  necessary. 
Ever)thing  seemed  in  inextricable  confusion. 

"  The  idea  of  having  anything  here  to-night,"  exclaimed 
Miss  Winthrop.  "  It  will  take  us  a  week  to  get  things  ar- 
ranged." 

"  The  thing  is  hopeless,"  said  the  blank  young  ladies. 

Even  Christine  looked  somewhat  dismayed,  but  she 
said,  "  Remember  we  have  till  half  past  eight." 

"  I  will  call  two  or  three  of  the  servants,"  said  Miss 
"brown. 

"I  beg  of  you  do  not,  at  least  not  yet,"  exclaimed 
Christine.  "  What  will  their  clumsy  hands  do  in  work 
hke  this,  but  mar  everj^thing  ?  I  have  great  faith  in  Mr. 
Fleet's  abilities,"  she  continued,  turning  toward  Dennis 
with  an  enchanting  smile,  and  resuming  the  tactics  of  the 
morning.  Though  the  smile  went  to  Dennis's  heart  like 
a  fiery  arrow,  his  pride,  thoroughly  aroused,  made  him  cold 
and  self-possessed.  He  naturally  assumed  the  manner 
8 


1 66  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

which  only  the  true  gentleman  can  when  offended,  who, 
though  wronged,  chooses  not  to  show  his  feelings  sa\'e  by 
a  grave,  quiet  dignity.  In  view  of  their  action  and  man- 
ner, he  consciously  felt  himself  tkeir  superior,  and  this 
impression  like  an  atmosphere  was  felt  by  them  also;  and 
as  they  looked  upon  his  -tall,  erect  form,  manly  bearing, 
his  large  dark  eyes,  in  which  still  lurked  the  fire  of  an  hon- 
est indignation,  they  felt  the  impossibility  of  ordering  him 
about  as  they  might  Mapes  the  carman.  They  regarded 
him  for  a  moment  in  awkward  silence,  not  knowing  what 
to  do  or  say.  Even  haughty  Christine  was  embarrassed, 
for  the  stronger  spirit  was  present  and  thoroughly  aroused, 
and  it  overpowered  the  weaker  natures.  Christine  had 
never  seen  Dennis  look  like  that,  and  did  not  know  that 
he  could.  He  was  so  different  from  the  eager,  humble 
servitor  that  heretofore  had  interpreted  her  very  wishes, 
even  before  spoken.  Moreover,  the  success  of  their  en- 
tertainment now  depended  upon  him,  and  she  felt  that  he 
was  in  a  mood  that  required  delicate  treatment,  and  that 
she  could  not  order  him  around  in  Pat  Murphy's  role,  to 
which  she  had  practically  assigned  him.  And  yet  if  she 
had  known  him,  she  might,  for  he  had  made  up  his  mind 
to  go  through  even  the  most  menial  service  with  proud  hu- 
mility, and  then  be  careful  not  to  be  so  caught  again;  and 
when  Dennis  had  resolved  upon  a  thing,  that  settled  the 
question  so  far  as  he  was  concerned.  Seeing  Christine's 
hesitation  and  embarrassment,  he  stepped  forward  and 
said — 

"  Miss  Ludclph,  if  you  will  indicate  your  wishes  I  will 
carry  them  Dut  as  rapidly  as  possible.  I  can  soon  bring 
order  out  of  this  confusion  ;  and  you  must  hav^e  some  plan 
of  arrangement." 

She  gave  him  a  quick,  grateful  glance,  that  thawed 
more  of  his  ice  than  he  cared  to  have  melt  so  quickly. 

"  Of  course  we  have,"  said  she.     "  This  is  but  the  ner^ 


CHRISTINE'S   IDEA   OF   CHRISTIANS.  167 

vous  hesitation  before  the  shock  of  a  battle  that  has  all 
been  planned  on  paper.     Here  is  our  programme." 

"  All  battles  do  not  go  forward  in  the  field  as  planned 
on  paper,  if  my  feeble  memory  serves  me,"  said  Miss  Win- 
throp  maliciously. 

"1  grant  you  that,"  said  Christine  quietly,  'and  you 
need  not  tax  your  memory  so  greatly  to  prove  it." 

She  was  now  very  kind  and  gracious  to  Dennis,  believ- 
ing that  to  be  the  best  policy.  It  usually  is,  but  she  re- 
ceived no  special  proof  of  it  from  him  ;  he  Hstened  alike 
to  request,  suggestion,  and  compliment.  There  was  noth- 
ing sullen  or  morose  in  his  appearance,  nothing  resentful 
or  rude.  He  heard  all  she  said  with  the  utmost  respect, 
and  carried  out  her  wishes  with  that  dexterous,  graceful 
promptness  for  which  he  had  few  equals.  At  the  same 
time  his  manner  was  that  of  one  who  thoroughly  respected 
himself — that  of  a  refined  and  cultured  person,  who,  hav- 
ing become  committed  to  a  disagreeable  part,  performed 
it  only  with  the  protest  o^  dignified  silence. 

As  his  first  step,  he  cleared  a  space  for  action,  and  ar 
ranged  every  thing  to  be  in  view  when  needed.  The  ra- 
pidity with  which  order  emerged  from  confusion,  was 
marvellous  to  the  young  ladies. 

Then  he  took  their  programme,  studied  it  a  few  mo 
ments,  and  compared  it  with  the  pictures  and  photographs 
of  the  scenes  they  wished  to  imitate.  He  then  arranged 
for  these  one  after  another,  placing  every  thing  need- 
ed within  reach,  and  where  it  could  readily  be  seen, 
making  the  cogibinations  beforehand  as  far  as  possible. 
As  he  worked  so  intelligently  and  skilfully,  requiring  so 
few  explanations,  the  young  ladies  exchanged  significant 
glances,  and  strolled  into  the  front  parlor.  They  must 
express  an  opinion. 

"  I  declare,  Christine,"  said  Miss  Winthrop,  "  it  is  a 
shame  that  you  did  not  introduce  him,  for  he  is  a  gentle- 
man.    He  works  like  a  captive  prince." 


1 68  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

"  How  romantic  !  "  gushed  the  colorless  young  ladies. 

"  Nonsense  !  "  said  Miss  Brown,  "  I  hate  to  see  any  one 
in  his  position  so  stuck  up." 

As  soon  as  she  had  seen  Dennis  fairly  at  work  just  like 
her  mother!s  servants,  or  her  father's  men,  she  felt  that  he 
ought  to  be  treated  as  such — riches  and  not  usefulness 
being  Miss  Brown's  patents  of  nobility ;  and  she  resolved 
if  possible  to  lower  his  ridiculous  pride,  as  she  regarded 
it.  Miss  Brown,  though  a  very  handsome,  stylish  girl  of 
a  certain  type,  was  yet  a  better  judge  of  her  fathers  beer 
than  of  many  other  things,  and  no  more  understood  Den- 
nis's feelings  than  she  did  Sanscrit. 

Christine  said  nothing,  but  admitted  to  herself  with  a 
secret  wonder,  that  Dennis  inspired  her  with  a  respect,  a 
sort  of  fear,  that  no  other  man  had,  save  her  father. 
There  was  something  in  his  manner  that  afternoon,  though 
altogether  respectful,  that  made  her  feel  that  he  was  not 
to  be  trifled  with.  This  impression  was  decidedly  height- 
ened when,  a  few  moments  lat«r.  Miss  Brown,  pursuant 
of  her  resolution  to  lower  Dennis's  pride,  ordered  him  in 
an  offensive  manner  to  do  something  for  her  that  had  no 
connection  with  the  entertainment.  At  first  he  acted  as 
if  he  had  not  heard  her,  but  his  rising  color  showed  that 
he  had.  In  spite  of  warning  glances  from  Christine  and 
Miss  Winthrop,  she  repeated  her  request  in  a  loud,  impe- 
rious tone. 

Dennis  drew  himself  up  to  his  full  height,  and  turning 
his  dark  flashing  eyes  full  upon  her,  said  firmly  and  qui- 
etly— 

"  I  am  ever  ready  to  offer  any  service  that  a  gentleman 
can  to  a  lady,  but  surely  I  am  not  your  footman." 

"  Your  pride  is  ridiculous,  sir.  You  are  to  help,  and 
■ji'ill  be  paid  for  it.  This  is  my  house,  and  I  expect 
persons  of  your  position,  while  in  it,  to  do  as  they  are 
bidden." 


CHRISTINE'S  IDEA   OF   CHRISTIANS.  169 

"  Since  such  are  the  rules  and  principles  of  your  house, 
permit  me  at  once  to  leave  you  in  full  possession,"  and  he 
was  about  to  retire  with  manner  as  cold  as  Mr.  Ludolph 
himself  could  have  assumed,  and  as  haughty,  when  a  light 
hand  fell  upon  his  arm.  Looking  down  he  met  the  deep 
blue  eyes  of  Christine  Ludolph  lifted  pleadingly  to  his. 

"  Mr.  Fleet,  you  need  not  do  what  is  asked.  It  is  not 
right  to  require  it.  In  fact  we  all  owe  you  an  apology." 
Then,  in  a  low,  quick  tone,  she  added,  "  Will  you  not  stay 
as  a  favor  to  me  .''  " 

She  felt  his  arm  tremble  under  her  hand,  there  was  a 
moment's  hesitation,  then  he  replied  in  the  same  manner. 

"  Miss  Ludolph,  you  can  command  me  on  this  occa- 
sion "  (there  was  no  promise  for  the  future),  and  then  he 
turned  to  his  work  as  if  resolved  to  see  and  know  nothing 
but  it,  till  the  ordeal  ended.  In  spite  of  herself  Christine 
blushed,  but  taking  Miss  Brown  by  the  arm  she  led  her 
aside  and  gave  her  a  vigorous  lecture. 

"  Are  you  mad.  Miss  Brown,"  she  said.  "  Doyou  not 
remember  that  nearly  a  thousand  dollars'  worth  of  tickets 
are  sold,  and  that. the  people  will  be  here  by  half  past 
eight,  and  at  nine  we  must  appear.  Even  after  what  he 
has  done,  if  you  should  drive  him  away,  the  thing  would 
be  a  failure,  and  we  would  be  the  ridiculous  town-talk  for 
a  year." 

«  But  I  hate—" 

"  No  matter  what  you  hate, — treat  him  as  you  please 
to-morrow.  We  need  him  now."  And  so  the  petted,  wil- 
ful girl,  spoiled  by  money  and  flattery,  was  kept  under  re- 
straint. -' 

A  great  deal  of  preparation  was  required  for  the  last 
two  pieces  on  the  programme,  and  the  young  ladies  group- 
ed themselves  gracefully  not  far  off  while  Dennis  worked. 
Christine  explained  from  time  to  time  as  the  natural 
leader  of  tlie   party.     Still  an  awkward  silence  followed 


170  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

the  scene  above  described.  On  the  philosophical  princi- 
ple, I  suppose,  that  nature  abhors  a  vacuum,  this  silence 
could  not  long  endure,  and  one  of  the  colorless  young  la- 
dies asked  a  question  that  led  to  more  than  she  intended, 
and,  indeed,  more  than  she  understood. 

"  Christine,  what  do  you  do  with  yourself  Sunday's  ? 
Your  pew  is  not  occupied  once  in  an  age." 

"  I  usually  paint  most  of  the  day,  and  ride  out  with 
papa  in  the  afternoon  when  it  is  pleasant." 

"  Why  you  are  a  perfect  little  heathen,"  they  all  ex- 
claimed in  chorus. 

"  Yes,  I  suppose  I  am  worse  than  a  Pagan,"  she  said, 
"  for  I  not  only  do  not  believe  in  your  superstitions,* but 
have  none  of  my  own." 

"  What  do  you  believe  in  then  ?  "  asked  Miss  Winthrop. 

"Art,  music,  fame,  power." 

She  announced  her  creed  so  coolly  and  decidedly  that 
Dennis  lifted  a  startled  face  to  hers.  She  saw  his  grieved, 
astonished  expression,  and  it  amused  her  very  much. 
Henceforth  she  spoke  as  much  for  his  benefit  as  theirs. 

"  If  you  would  be  equally  honest,"  she  continued,  "  you 
would  find  that  your  creeds  also  are  very  different  from  the 
one  in  the  prayer-book." 

"  And  what  would  mine  be,  pray  ?  "  asked  one  of  the 
colorless  young  ladies. 

"I  will  sum  it  up  in  one  sentence.  Miss  Jones,  keep 
in  the  fashion." 

"  I  think  that  you  are  very  unjust.  I'm  sure  I  go  to 
church  regularly,  and  attend  a  great  many  services  in  Lent 
and  on    Saints'   days.     I've  been  confirmed,  and  all  that." 

"Yes,  it  is  the  thing  to  do  in  your  set.  Now,  here  is 
?vliss  Winthrop,  a  Presbyteriar!,  who  manifests  quite  an- 
othei  religious  phase." 

"  Pray  what  is  mine  ?  "  asked  that  lady,  laughing. 

"  O  you  want  hair-splitting  in  regard  to  the  high  doo 


CHRISTINE'S   IDEA  OF   CHRISTIANS. 


17. 


trines — clear,  brilliant  arguments,  cutting  like  sharp,  mei- 
ciless  steel  into  the  beliefs  of  other  denominations.  7"'' en, 
after  your  ism  has  been  glorified  for  an  hour,  on  Sunday 
morning,  and  all  other  isms  pierced  and  lashed,  you  de- 
scend from  your  intellectual  heights,  eat'  a  good  dinner, 
take  a  nap,  and  live  like  the  rest  of  uS  till  the  next  Sab- 
bath, when  (if  it  is  a  fine  day)  you  climb  some  other  theo- 
logical peak,  far  beyond  the  limits  of  perpetual  snow, 
and  there  take  another  bird's-eye  view  of  something  that 
might  be  found  very  different  if  j'ou  were  nearer  to  it." 

"  And  what  is  my  phase  ? "  asked  Miss  Brown. 

"O  you  are  an  out-and-out  sinner,  and  do  just  what 
yoti  please,  in  spite  of  priest  or  prayer-book,"  said  Chris- 
tine with  a  laugh  in  which  all  the  ladies  joined. 

"  Well,"  said  Miss  Brown,  "  I  do  not  think  that  I  am 
worse  than  the  rest  of  you." 

"  Not  in  the  least,"  replied  Christine.  "  We  all  have 
some  form  of  religion,  or  none  at  all,  as  it  accords  with 
our  peculiar  tastes." 

"  And  you  mean  to  say  that  having  a  religion  or  not, 
is  a  mere  matter  of  taste,  asked  Miss  Winthrop. 

"  Yes,  I  should  say  it  was,  and  practically  that  it  is. 
You  ladies,  and  nearly  all  that  I  have  met,  seem  to  choose 
a  style  of  religion  suited  to  your  tastes ;  and  the  tastes  of 
many  incline  them  to  have  no  religion  at  all." 

"  Why,  Miss  Ludolph,"  exclaimed  Miss  Winthrop,  hei 
cheeks  glowing  with  honest  dissent  and  zeal  for  the  truth. 
"  Our  religion  is  taken  from  the  Bible.  Do  you  not  be 
lieve  in  the  Bible  ? " 

"  No !  not  in  the  sense  that  you  ask  the  question  ;  nor 
you  either,  my  charming  Miss  Winthrop." 

"  Indeed  I  do,  every  word  of  it,"  said  the  orthodox 
young  lady,  hotly. 

"  Let  me  test  you.  Miss  Brown,  have  you  such  a  book 
in  the  house  ?     O  yes,  here  is  an  elegantly-bound  copy 


172  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY, 

but  looking  as  if  never  opened.  And  now,  Miss  Win* 
throp,  this  city  is  full  of  all  sorts  of  horrid  people,  living 
in  alleys,  and  tenement  houses  several  layers  deep ;  they 
are  poor,  half  naked,  hungry,  and  sometimes  starving: 
mai;/  are  in  prison,  and  more  ought  to  be ;  many  are 
strangers,  more  utterly  alone  and  lonely  ,in  our  cro\yded 
streets  than  on  a  desert  island :  they  are  suffering  from 
varieties  of  disgusting  disease,  and  having  a  hard  time 
generally.  How  many  hungry  people  have  you  fed  ?  How 
many  strangers  (I  do  not  mean  distinguished  ones  from 
abroad),  have  you  taken  in  and  comforted  ?  How  many 
of  the  naked  have  you  clothed  ?  And  how  long  is  your 
list  of  the  sick  and  imprisoned  that  you  have  visited,  my 
luxurious  little  lady  ?  " 

A  real  pallor  overspread  Miss  Winthrop's  sunny  face, 
for  she  saw  what  was  coming,  but  she  answered  hon- 
estly— 

"  I  have  done  practically  nothing  of  all  this  ;"  then 
she  added,  "  papa  and  mamma  are  not  willing  that  I 
should  visit  such  places  and  people.  I  have  asked  that  I 
might,  but  they  always  discourage  me,  and  tell  of  the 
awful  experiences  of  those  who  do." 

"  Then  they  don't  believe  the  Bible,  either,"  said  Chris- 
tine. "  For  if  they  did  they  would  insist  ori  your  doing  it ; 
and  if  you  believed  you  would  do  all  this  in  spite  of  them, 
for  see  what  is  written  here.  The  very  Being  that  you 
worship  and  dedicate  your  churches  to,  will  say,  because 
not  doing  this,  *  Depart  from  me,  ye  cursed,  into  ever- 
lasting fire,  prepared  for  the  devil  and  his  angels.'  And 
this  is  but  one  of  many  similar  passages.  Now  all  this  is 
a  monstrous  fable  to  me.  The  idea  of  any  such  experi- 
ence awaiting  my  light-hearted  little  Sybarite  here  !" 

Miss  W'iiuhrop  had  buried  her  face  in  her  hands,  and 
was  tienibling  from  head  to  foot.  The  words  of  God 
never  seemed  so  real  and  true  before,  as  now  while  utter- 
ed by  an  unbeliever. 


CHRIS  nNE'S  IDEA   OF   CHRISTIANS. 


173 


"  I  don't  believe  there  is  any  such  place  Or  things," 
said  Miss  Brown  bluntly. 

"  There  spake  my  mature  and  thoughtless  friend  who 
is  not  to  be  imposed  upon,"  said  Christine  with  a  touch  of 
irony  in  her  tone. 

Dennis  had  listened  in  sad  wonder.  Such  words  of 
cynical  unbelief  were  in  dark,  terrible  contrast  with  the 
fair  young  face.  He  saw  the  mind  and  training  of  her 
falher  in  all  she .  said,  but  he  bitterly  condemned  the 
worldly,  inconsistent  life  of  multitudes  in  the  church  who 
do  more  to  confirm  unbelievers  than  all  their  sophistries. 
But  as  she  went  on  seemingly  having  the  argument  all 
her  own  way,  his  whole  soul  burned  to  meet  and  refute 
her  fatal  views.  For  her  own  sake  and  the  others,  as  well 
as  for  the  dishonored  name  of  his  Lord,  he  must  in  some 
way  turn  the  tide.  Though  regarded  as  a  humble  servitor, 
having  no  right  to  take  part  in  the  conversation,  he  de- 
termined that  his  hands  must  lift  up  the  standard  of  truth 
if  no  others  would  or  could.  To  his  joy  he  found  that 
the  programme  would  soon  give  him  the  coveted  oppor- 
tunity. 

Christine  went  on  with  a  voice  as  smooth  and  musical 
as  the  flow  of  a  stream  over  a  glacier. 

"  I  have  read  the  Bible  several  times,  and  that  is  more 
than  all  of  you  can  say,  I  think.  It  is  a  wonderful  book, 
and  has  been  the  inspiration  of  some  of  our  best  art. 
There  are  parts  that  I  enjoy  reading  very  much  for  their 
sublimity  and  peculiarity.  But  who  pretends  to  live  as 
this  old  and  partially  obsolete  book  teaches  ?  Take  my 
father  for  instance.  All  the  gentlemen  in  the  church  that 
I  know  of,  can  do,  and  are  accustomed  to  do,  just  what 
he  does,  and  som?  I  think  do  much  worse  ;  and  yet  he  is 
an  infidel  as  you  would  term  him.  And  as  to  the  ladies, 
not  the  Bible,  but  fashion  rules  them  with  a  rod  of  iron. 
I  have  cut  free  from  it  all,  and  art  shall  be  my  religion  and 
the  inspiration  of  my  life." 


174 


BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 


As  Christine  talked  on,  the  twilight  deepened,  and 
Dennis  worked  with  increasing  eagerness. 

"  After  all,"  she  continued,  "  it  is  only  history  repeat- 
ing itself.  The  educated  mind  to-day  stands  in  the  same 
relation  to  Christianity  that  the  cultured  mind  of  Greece 
and  Rome  stood  to  the  older  mythology  in  the  second 
century.  The  form  of  religion  was  kept  up,  but  its  belief 
and  power  were  fast  dying  out.  The  cities  abounded  in 
gorgeous  temples,  and  were  thronged  with  worshippers, 
but  they  sacrificed  at  the  dictates  of  fashion,  custom,  and 
law,  not  of  faith.  So  our  cities  are  adorned  with  splen- 
did churches,  and  fashion  and  the  tastes  of  the  congre- 
gation decide  as  to  the  form  of  service.  They  differ 
widely  from  each  other,  and  all  differ  from  the  Bible. 
The  ancients  gave  no  more  respect  to  what  was  regarded 
the  will  of  their  imaginary  deities  than  do  modern  Chris- 
tians to  the  precepts  of  the  Bible.  People  went  to  the 
ceremonies,  got  through  with  them,  and  then  did  what 
they  pleased  ;  and  so  they  do  now. 

"  Take  for  instance  one  of  your  commonest  doctrines, 
that  of  prayer :  the  majority  have  no  practical  belief  in 
it.  My  father  has  taken  me,  and  out  of  curiosity  I  have 
attended  several  prayer  meetings.  The  merest  fraction 
of  the  congregation  are  present  at  the  best  of  times,  and  if 
the  night  is  stormy,  the  number  out  is  painfully  small.  Yet 
all  profess  to  believe  that  the  Lord  of  heaven  and  earth 
will  be  present,  and  that  it  is  His  will  that  they  should  be. 
\'our  Bible  teaches  that  the  Being  who  controls  completely 
the  destiny  of  every  person,  will  be  in  the  midst  of  those 
gaihered  in  His  name,  to  hear  and  answer  the  peti 
tioiis.  If  this  is  true,  then  no  earthly  ruler  was  ever  so 
ne;4iecied  and  insulted,  so  generally  ignored  as  this  very 
Deiiy  10  whom  you  ascribe  unlimited  power,  and  from 
whom  )  ()u  say  you  receive  life  and  everything.  An  east- 
ern despot  would  take  off  the  heads  of  those  who  treat- 


CHRISTINE'S   IDEA   OF  CHRISTIANS. 


175 


ed  him  in  such  style,  and  a  republican  politician  would 
scoff  at  the  idea  of  giving  office  to  such  lukewarm  follow- 
ers. Why  here  in  Christian  Chicago  the  will  of  God  is  no 
more  heeded  by  the  majority  than  that  of  the  Emperor 
of  China,  and  the  Bible  might  as  well  be  the  Koran. 
Looking  at  these  facts  from  my  impartial  standpoint,  I  am 
driven  to  one  of  two  alternatives  :  either  you  regard  your 
God  as  so  kind  and  good,  so  merciful,  that  you  can  tres- 
pass on  His  forbearance  to  any  extent,  and  treat  Him 
with  a  neglect  and  indifference  that  none  would  manifest 
toward  the  pettiest  earthly  potentate,  and  still  all  be  well ; 
or  else  you  have  no  real  practical  belief  in  your  religion. 
Though  not  very  charitably  inclined,  I  cannot  think  quite 
so  meanly  of  human  nature  as  to  take  the  former  view,  so 
I  am  driven  to  the  latter.  For  surely  no  man  who  wished 
to  live  and  prosper,  no  woman  who  loved  her  husband 
and  children,  could  so  coolly  and  continually  disregard 
the  Deity  in  whom  they  profess  to  believe  with  the  old 
Greek  Poet,  they  "  live,  move,  and  have  their  being." 

The  twilight  deepened,  and  Christine  continued,  her 
words  portraying  the  decline  of  faith  according,  ominously 
with  the  increasing  gloom. 

"  Why,  in  order  to  see  the  truth  of  what  I  am  saying, 
look  at  the  emblem  of  your  faith — the  Cross.  All  its  his- 
torical associations  are  those  of  self-denial,  and  suffering 
for  others.  The  Founder  of  your  faith  endured  death 
upon  it.  He  was  a  great  good  man  like  Socrates,  though 
no  doubt  a  mistaken  enthusiast.  But  what  He  meant.  He 
said  plainly  and  clearly,  as  for  instance,  '  Whosoever  doth 
not  bear  his  cross  and 'come  after  Me,  cannot  be  My  dia- 
ciple.'  I  admit  that  in  the  past  He  had  a  wonderful  fol- 
lowing. In  the  ages  of  martyrdom  multitudes  left  all  and 
endured  all  that  He  did  for  His  sake.  But  so  there  have 
been  other  great  leaders  with  equally  devoted  followers. 
But  in  this  practical  age  reUgious  enthusiasm  has  but  lit- 


176  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWA\. 

tie  chance.  What  crosses  do  the  members  of  the  Church 
of  the  Holy  Virgin  take  up  ?  and  what  are  borne  by  your 
great  rich  Church,  Miss  Winthrop  ?  The  shrewd  people 
of  this  day  manage  better,  and  put  their  crosses  on  top  of 
the  church.  I  suppose  they  reason  that  the  stone  tower 
can  carry  it  for  the  whole  congregation  on  the  principle 
of  a  labor-saving  machine.  But  honestly  your  modern 
disciples  are  no  more  like  their  Master  than  one  of  the 
pale,  slim,  white-kidded  gentlemen  who  will  be  here  to- 
night, is  like  Richard  Cceur  de  Leon  as  he  led  a  charge 
against  the  Moslems.  Your  cross  is  dwindling  to  a  mere 
pretty  ornament — an  emblem  of  a  past  that  is  fast  fading 
from  men's  memories.  It  will  never  have  the  power  to 
inspire  the  heart  again,  as  when  the  Crusaders — " 

At  that  moment  their  eyes  were  blinded  by  a  sudden, 
dazzling  light.  There  was  a  general  and  startled  excla- 
mation, and  then,  awe-struck  and  silent,  they  gazed  as  if 
spell-bound  upon  a  luminous  cross  blazing  before  them. 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

EQUAL   TO    AN    EMERGENCY. 


The  fiery  cross  that  so  awed  Christine  and  her  little 
group  of  auditors,  was  to  be  the  closing  scene  of  the 
evening  entertainment.  It  was  of  metal,  and  by  a  skilful 
adjustment  of  jets  was  made  to  appear  as  if  all  aflame. 
While  the  others  were  intent  on  Christine's  words,  and  she 
in  the  interest  of  her  theme  had  quite  forgotten  him,  Den- 
nis made  all  his  arrangements,  and  at  the  critical-  point 
narrated  in  the  preceding  chapter,  he  turned  on  the  gas 
with  the  most  startling  efifect.  It  seemed  a  living,  vivid 
refutation  of  Christine's  words,  and  even  she  turned  pale. 


EQUAL  TO   AN  EMERGENCY.  177 

After  a  moment,  for  the  emblem  to  make  its  full  impres- 
sion, Dennis  stepped  out  before  them  all,  his  face  lighted 
up  by  the  luminous  cross.     They  admitted  that  no  Crusa-. 
der  could  look  more  earnest  and  brave  than  he. 

"  Miss  Ludolph,"  he  said  in  firm  yet  respectful  tones, 
"  I  should  evermore  be  unworthy  of  your  respect  and  con- 
fidence, what  is  more,  I  should  be  false  to  myself,  false  to 
my  faith,  should  I  remain  silent  in  view  of  what  I  have 
been  compelled  to  hear.  That  sacred  emblem  has  not 
spent  its  meaning,  or  its  power.  Millions  to-day  would  die 
for  the  sake  of  Him  who  suffered  on  it.  Many  even  of 
those  weak,  inconsistent  ones  that  you  have  so  justly  con- 
demned, would  part  with  life  rather  than  the  faint  hope 
that  centres  there,"  pointing  to  the  radiant  symbol. 

"  You  are  rude,  sir,"  said  Christine,  her  face  pale,  but 
her  eyes  flashing  in  turn. 

"  No,  he  is  right !  he  is  right !  "  exclaimed  Miss  Win- 
throp,  springing  up  with  tears  in  her  eyes.  "  Undeserving 
as  I  am  of  the  name  of  Christian,  I  would  die,  I  know  I 
would  die,  before  I  would  give  up  my  poor  little  hope, — ■ 
though  I  confess  you  make  me  fear  that  it  is  a  false  one. 
But  its  the  best  I  have,  and  I  /naan  it  shall  be  better.  I 
think  a  good  touch  of  persecution  that  would  bring  peo- 
ple out,would  do  the  Church  mere  good  than  anything  else.' 

"  Pardon  me,  Miss  Ludolph,"  continued  Dennis;  "but 
I  appeal  to  your  sense  of  justice.  Could  I  be  a  true  man 
and  be  silent,  believing  what  I  do .''  Could  I  hear  the  name 
of  my  Best  Friend  thus  spoken  of,  and  say  not  one  word 
in  His  behalf? 

"  But  I  spoke  most  highly  of  the  Christ  of  the  Bible." 

"  You  spoke  of  Him  as  a  great,  good,  but  mistaken 
man,  an  enthusiast.  To  me  He  is  the  mighty  God,  my 
Divine  Saviour,  to  whom  I  owe  infinitely  more  than  life. 
You  know  that  I  mean  no  disrespect  to  you,"  he  added 
with  gentle  but  manly  courtesy.     "  I  regret  more  deeply 


l-jS  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

than  words  can  express  that  you  honestly  think  as  you  do. 
But  if  I  as  honestly  believe  the  Bible,  am  I  not  acting  as 
.  you  said  a  true  follower  ought  ?  For  I  assure  you  it  is  a 
heavier  cross  than  you  can  ever  know,  to  speal:  thus  un- 
bidden where  I  am  regarded  only  as  a  serving-man.  But 
would  I  not  be  false  and  cowardly,  if  I  held  my  peace  ? 
And  if  you  afterwards  should  know  that  I  claimed  the 
name  of  Christian,  would  you  not  despise  me  as  you  re- 
membered this  scene  ? " 

Christine  bit  her  lip  and  hesitated,  but  her  sense  of 
justice  prevailed,  and  she  said — 

"  I  not  only  pardon  you,  but  commend  your  course  in 
view  of  your  evident  sincerity." 

Dennis  replied  by  a  low  bow. 

At  this  moment  there  was  a  loud  ring  at  the  door. 

"  There  come  the  gentlemen,"  exclaimed  Miss  Brown. 
"  I  am  so  glad.  O  dear,  what  a  long,  uncomfortable 
preachment  we  have  had  ;  now  for  some  fun." 

The  colorless  young  ladies  had  stared  first  at  Christine, 
and  then  at  the  cross,  in  blank  amazement. 

At  the  word  "  gentlemen  "  they  were  all  on  the  alert  and 
ready  for  real  life  ;  but  Miss  Winthrop  left  the  room  for  a 
short  time. 

A  handsome,  lively  youth  entered,  scattering  bows  and 
compliments  on  every  side  with  the  off"-hand  ease  of  an  ac- 
complished society  man.  He  paid  no  heed  to  Dennis,  evi- 
dently regarding  him  as  the  showman. 

"  Well,  ladies,  you  have  done  your  part,"  he  said,  "your 
arrangements  seem  complete." 

"  Yes,  Mr.  Mellen  ;  but  where  is  Mr.  Archer,  our  tenor  ?" 
asked  Christine.  "  We  have  only  three-quarters  of  an  hour 
for  music  rehearsal,  before  we  must  retire  to  dress  for  out 
paits." 

"  Bad  news  for  you,  Miss  Ludolph,"  said  Mr.  Mellen, 
coming  to  her  side ;  "  Archer  is  sick  and  can't  come." 


EQUAL  TO  AN   EMERGENCY.  i-jg 

"  Can't  come  ?  "  they  all  exclaimed  in  dismayed  chorus. 

"  AY  hat  is  the  matter  ?"  asked  Miss  Winthrop  anxiously, 
coming  in  at  that  moment. 

"  Matter  enough,"  said  Miss  Brown  poutingly,  "  that 
horrid  Archer  has  gone  and  got  sick.  I  do  believe  he  did 
it  on  purpose.  He  did  not  know  his  parts  near  as  well  as 
he  ought,  and  he  has  taken  this  way  to  get  out  of  it." 

"  But  he  promised  me  he  would  study  them  all  the  morn- 
ing," said  Christine.  ''  O  I  am  so  sorry.  What  shall  we 
do  ?  Our  entertainment  seems  fated  to  be  a  failure,"  and 
she  spoke  in  a  tone  of  deep  disappointment. 

"  I  assure  you  I  feel  the  deepest  sympathy  for  you," 
said  Mr.  Mellen,  looking  tenderly  at  Christine,  "  but  I  did 
my  best.  I  tried  to  drag  Archer  here  out  of  his  sick-bed, 
and  then  I  ran  around  among  some  other  good  singers 
that  I  know,  but  none  would  venture.  They  said  the  mu- 
sic was  difficult,  and  would  require  much  practice,  and  that 
now  is  impossible." 

"  O  isn't  it  too  bad,"  mourned  Miss  Winthrop.  "  The 
programme  is  all  printed,  and  the  people  will  be  so  disap- 
pointed. We  can't  have  that  splendid  duet  that  you  and 
Mr.  Archer  were  to  sing  together,  Christine.  I  have  a 
score  of  friends  who  were  coming  to  hear  that  alone." 

"  O  as  for  that  matter,  half  our  music  is  spoiled,"  said 
Christine  dejectedly.  "  Well  this  is  the  last  time  I  attempt 
anything  of  the  kind.  How  in  the  world  we  are  going  to 
get  out  of  this  scrape,  I  do  not  knojv.  The  tickets  are  so 
high,  and  so  much  has  been  said,  that  the  people  are  ex- 
pecting a  great  deal,  and  there  is  every  prospect  of  a  most 
lame  and  impotent  conclusion." 

A  general  gloom  settled  upon  the  faces  of  all.  At  this 
moment  Dennis  stepped  forward  hesitatingly  and  said  to 
Christine — 

"  Have  you  the  music  that  Mr.  Archer  was  to  sing? " 

"  Certainly  !  do  you  suppose  it  was  of  the  kind  that 


l8o     ..  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAV. 

he  could  make  up  out  of  his  head?"  said  Miss  Brown 
pertly. 

"  Will  you  let  me  see  it  ?  If  you  are  willing,  perhaps  I 
can  assist  you  in  this  matter." 

All  turned  toward  him  with  a  look  of  great  surprise. 

"  What  do  you  think  of  that  from  the  man  who  sweeps 
Mr.  Ludolph's  store  ?  "  asked  Miss  Brown  in  a  loud  whisper. 

"  I  think  the  fellow  is  as  pr.esuming  as  he  is  ignorant," 
said  Mr.  Mellen  so  plainly  that  all  heard  him. 

'*  It  is  not  presuming,  sir,  to  offu-r  a  kindness  where  it 
is  needed,"  said  Dennis  with  dignity,  "and  my  ignorance 
is  not  yet  proved.     The  presumption  is  all  on   your  part.' 

Mr.  Mellen  flushed  and  was  about  to  answer  angrily, 
when  Miss  Winthrop  said  hastily  but  in  a  kindly  tone — 

"  But  really  Mr.  Fleet,  much  of  our  music  is  new  and 
very  difficult." 

"  But  it  is  written,  is  it  not  ? "  asked  Dennis  with  a 
smile. 

Christine  looked  at  him  in  silent  wonder.  What  would 
he  not  do  next  ?  But  she  was  sorry  that  he  had  spoken, 
for  she  foresaw  only  mortification  for  him. 

"  O  give  him  the  music  by  all  means,"  said  Miss  Brown, 
expecting  to  ertjoy  his  blundering  attempts  to  sing  what  was 
far  beyond  him.  "  There,  I  will  play  the  accompaniment. 
It's  not  the  tune  of  Old  Hundred  that  you  are  to  sing  now, 
young  man,  remember." 

Dennis  glanced  over  the  music,  and  she  commenced 
playing  a  loud,  difficult  piece. 

He  turned  to  Miss  Ludolph  and  said, 

"■  I  fear  you  have  given  me  the  wrong  music.  Miss 
Brown  is  playing  something  not  written  here.  " 

They  exchanged  significant  glances,  and  Miss  Winthrop 
said— 

"  Play  the  right  music.  Miss  Brown." 

She  striack  into  the  music  that  Dennis  held,  but  played 


■      EQUAL  TO   AN   EMERGENCY.  i8i 

it  so  out  of  time,  that  no  one  could  sing  it.  Dennis  laid 
down  his  sheets  on  the  piano  and  said  quietly,  though  with 
flushed  face, 

"  I  did  not  mean  to  be  obtrusive.  You  all  seem  greatly 
disappointed  at  Mr.  Archer's  absence  and  the  results,  and 
I  thought  that  in  view  of  the  emergency  it  would  not  be 
presumption  to  offer  my  services.  But  it  seems  thai  I  am 
mistaken." 

"  No,  it  is  not  presumption,"  said  Miss  Winthrop.  "  It 
was  true  kindness  and  courtesy,  which  has  been  ill  re- 
quited. But  you  see,  to  be  frank,  Mr.  Fleet,  we  all  fear 
that  you  do  not  realize  what  you  are  undertaking." 

"  Must  I  of  necessity  be  an  ignoramus  because,  as 
Miss  Brown  says,  I  sweep  a  store  ?  " 

"  Let  me  play  the  accompaniment,"  said  Christine, 
with  the  decided  manner  of  her  own  that  few  resisted, 
and  she  went  correctly  through  the  difficult  and  brilliant 
passage.  Dennis  followed  his  part  with  both  eye  and  ear, 
and  then  said —  * 

"  Perhaps  I  had  better  sing  my  part  alone  first,  and 
then  you  can  correct  any  mistakes." 

There  was  a  flutter  of  expectation,  a  wink  from  Mr. 
Mellen,  and  an  audible  titter  from  Miss  Brown. 

"  Certainly,"  said  Miss  Ludolph,  who  thought  to  her- 
self "  If  he  will  make  a  fool  of  himself,  he  may,"  and 
she  played  the  brief  prelude. 

Then  prompt  upon  the  proper  note,  true  to  time  and 
note,  Dennis's  rich,  powerful  tenor  voice  startled,  and  then 
entranced  them  all.  He  sang  the  entire  passage  through, 
with  only  such  mistakes  as  resulted  from  his  nervousness 
and  embarrassment. 

At  the  close,  all  exclaimed  in  admiration  save  Miss 
Brown,  who  bit  her  lip  in  ill-concealed  vexation,  but  she 
said  with  a  half  sneer — 

"  Really,  Mr.  What-is-your-name,  you  are  almost  equal 
to  Blind  Tom." 


l82  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY.      • 

"  You  do  Blind  Tom  great  injustice,"  said  Dennis.  "  I 
read  my  music." 

"  But  how  did  you  learn  to  read  music  in  that  style  ? " 
asVed  Christine. 

"  Of  course  it  took  me  years  to  do  so.  But  no  one 
could  join  our  musical  club  at  college  who  could  not  read 
anything  placed  before  him." 

"  It  must  have  been  small  and  select,  then." 

"  It  was." 

"  How  often  had  you  sung  that  piece  before  .■' "  asked 
Miss  Brown. 

"  I  never  saw  it  before,"  answered  Dennis. 

"Why  it  is  just  out,"  said  Christine.  . 

"Well,  ladies  and  gentlemen,  our  troubles  are  over 
.It  last,"  said  Miss  Winthrop.  "  Mr.  Fleet  seems  a  good 
genius — equal  to  any  emergency.  If  he  can  sing  that 
difficult  passage,  he  can  sing  anything  else  we  have.  •  We 
had  better  run  over  our  parts,  and  then  to  our  toilets."  > 

One  of  the  colorless  young  Ladies  played  the  accom- 
paniments, her  music  making  a  sort  of  neutral  tint,  against 
which  their  rich  ana  varied  voices  came  out  with  better 
effect.  They  sang  rapidly  through  the  programme.  Den- 
nis sustaining  his  parts  correctly,  and  with  taste.  He 
could  read  any  music  placed  before  him  like  the  open 
page  of  a  book,  and  years  of  practice  enabled  him  to  sing 
true,  and  with  confidence.  As  he  sang  one  thing  after 
another  with  perfect  ease,  their  wonder  grew,  and  when 
in  the  final  duet  with  Christine,  they  both  came  out 
strongly,  their  splendid,  thoroughly-trained  voices  blend- 
ing in  perfect  harmony,  they  were  rewarded  with  a  spon- 
taneous burst  of  applause,  in  which  even  Miss  Brown  was 
compelled  to  join. 

Christine  said  nothing,  but  gave  Dennis  a  quick,  grate- 
ful glance,  which  amply  repaid  him  for  the  martyrdom 
she  had  led  him  into  that  afternoon. 


EQUAL  TO   AN   EMERGENCY.  183 

He  acknowledged  the  plaudits  of  the  others  with  a 
slight,  cool  bow,  but  her  thanks  with  a  warm  flush  of  pleas- 
ure, and  then  turned  to  complete  his  arrangements  as  if 
nothing  had  happened.  There  was  not  the  slightest  ihov» 
of  exultation,  or  of  a  purpose  to  demand  equality  in  view 
ol  what  had  happened.  His  old  manner  returned,  and  he 
acted  as  if  they  all  were  strangers  to  him.  They  ex- 
changed significant,  won<^ering  glances,  and  after  a  brief 
consultation,  retired  to  the  dining-room,  where  coffee  and 
sandwiches  were  waiting.  Miss  Winthrop  and  Christine 
sincerely  hoped  that  Miss  Brown  would  invite  Dennis  out, 
but  she  did  not,  and  as  it  was  her  house,  as  she  had  said, 
they  could  not  interfere.  Dennis  heard  the  clatter  of  knives 
and  forks,  and  saw  that  he  was  again  slighted ;  but  he  did 
not  care  now.  Indeed  in  the  light  of  the  sacred  emblem 
before  which  he  had  stood,  he  had  learned  to  have  a  genu- 
ine pity  for  them  all. 

He  remembered  how  the  rich  and  great  of  the  world 
had  treated  his  Master. 

Then  too  Christine's  kind,  grateful  glance  seemed  to 
fall  upon  him  like  a  warm  ray  of  sunlight. 

After  they  were  through  and  about  to  dress  for  their 
parts,  Miss  Brown  put  her  head  within  the  door  and  said 
shortly — 

"  You  will  find  some  lunch  in  the  dining-room.'' 

"  Dennis  paid  no  heed  to  her,  but  he  heard  Miss  Win- 
throp say, — 

"  Really,  Miss  Brown,  that  is  too  bad  after  what  he ' 
has  done  and  shown  himself  to  be,  I  wonder  that  he  does 
not  leave  the  house." 

"  He  will  not  do  that  till  all  is  over,"  said  Christine. 

"  Then  he  may  as  soon  as  he  chooses,"  said  Miss 
Brown.  She  was  a  girl  of  violent  prejudices,  and  from 
her  very  nature  would  instinctively  dislike  such  a  person 
as  Dennis  Fleet. 


1 84  BARRIERS   BURNED  AWAY". 

"  Well,"  said  Miss  Winthrop,  "  he  is  a  gentleman,  and 
he  gave  the  strongest  proof  of  it  when  he  quietly  and  mod- 
estly withdrew  after  achieving  a  success  that  would  have 
turned  any  one's  head,  and  which  ought  to  have  secured 
him  full  recognition." 

"  I  told  you  he  was  a  gentleman,"  said  Christine  briefly, 
"  and  I  consider  myself  a  judge,"  and  then  their  voices 
passed  out  of  hearing. 

Dennis  having  arranged  everything  so  that  he  could 
place  his  hands  right  upon  it,  found  that  he  had  half  an 
hour  to  spare.  He  said  to  himself,  "Miss  Ludolph  is 
wrong.  I  shall  leave  the  house  a  short  time  ;  I  am  a  most 
unromantic  individual,  for  no  matter  what,  or  how,  I  feel, 
I  will  get  hungry.  But  I  am  sure  Miss  Brown's  cofifee'and 
sandwiches  would  choke  me.  I  have  already  swallowed 
too  much  from  her  to  care  for  any  more,  so  here's  for  a 
restaurant." 

Miss  Winthrop  hastened  through  her  toilet  in  order 
that  she  might  come  down  and  speak  to  Dennis  while  he 
was  alone.  She  wished  to  thank  him  for  his  course  and 
his  vindication  of  the  truth,  and  assure  him  that  she  both 
respected  and  would  treat  him  as  a  true  gentleman.  She 
went  into  the  back  parlor,  but  he  was  not  there  ;  then  she 
passed  to  the  dining-room,  but  found  only  servants  clear- 
ing away  and  preparing  for  the  grand  supper  of  the  even- 
ing. 

In  quick  alarm  she  asked, 

"Where  is  Mr.  Heat?" 

"Is  it  the  man  in  the  back  parlor,  mum?  He's  just 
after  goin'  out." 

"  O  girls,"  exclaimed  Miss  Winthrop,  lushing  up  stairs, 
"  Mr.  Fleet  has  gone." 

And  there  was  general  consternation. 


THE  REVELATION.  185 


CHAPTER  XXV. 

THE      REVELATION. 

The  toilets  of  the  young  ladies  were  nearly  completed, 
but  without  waiting  to  put  another  touch,  all  hastened  to 
the  place  where  they  had  left  Dennis.  One  of  the  color- 
less voung  ladies  appeared  upon  the  scene  with  a  shawl 
around  her  bare  shoulders,  and  a  great  deal  of  color  on 
one  cheek,  and  none  on  the  other  as  yet,  but  this  slight 
discrepancy  was  unnoted  in  the  dire  calamity  they  feared. 

Many  were  the  exclamations  and  lamentations. 

"  Why,  the  people  will  be  here  in  fifteen  minutes,"  said 
Miss  Winthrop  in  a  nervous  tremor. 

"Did  he  leave  no  word?"  asked  Miss  Brown  of  the 
servants. 

"  No  word,  mum,"  was  the  dismal  echo. 

"  What  shall  we  do  ?"  they  said,  looking  at  each  other 
with  blank  faces  ;  but  none  could  answer. 

"  I  do  hate  such  proud,  stuck-up  people.  Ther^  is  no 
managing  or  depending  on  them,"  said  Miss  Brown  spite- 
fully.    : 

Miss  Winthrop  bit  her  lips  to  keep  from  saying  to  her 
hostess  what  would  be  more  true  than  polite.  There  was 
a  flash  of  anger  in  Christine's  dark  blue  eyes,  and  she  said 
coldly, 

"  I  imagine  that  you  have  finished  the  business  this 
time,  Miss  Brown.  But  I  confess  that  I  am  greatly  sur- 
prised, for  he  said  I  could  depend  upon  him  for  to» 
night" 


1 86  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

"  So  you  can,"  said  Dennis,  coming  in  behind  them, 
"  r  am  sorr}-  you  have  had  this  needless  alarm.  But  the 
fact  is.  I  am  a  plain,  ordinary  mortal,  and  live  in  a  very 
material  way." 

"There  was  plenty  of  lunch  in  the  dining-room,"  said 
Miss  Brown  tartly.  "  You  need  not  have  gone  out  and 
made  all  this  trouble." 

"  Pardon  me  for  slighting  your  hospitality^''  said  Den- 
nis with  emphasis  on  the  word,  "  but  1  am  very  fastidious 
as  to  the  seasoning  of  my  food." 

"Again  significant  glances  were  exchanged,  and  there 
was  a  suppressed  titter  at  Miss  Brown's  expense.  She 
darted  a  blank  look  at  Dennis,  and  left  the  room. 

"  1  can  assure  you,  ladies,"  added  he,  "  that  all  is  ready. 
I  can  lay  my  hand  on  whatever  is  needed  in  a  moment, 
you  need  give  yourselves  no  further  anxiety." 

There  was  a  general  stampede  for  the  dressing  rooms, 
but  Miss  Winthrop  lingered.  When  Dennis  was  alone 
she  went  up  to  him  and  frankly  gave  her  hand,  saying, 

"  Mr.  Fleet,  I  wish  to  thank  you  for  your  course  to-day. 
Between  Miss  Ludolph's  unwitting  sermon,  and  your  brave 
and  unexpected  vindication  of  our  faith,  I  hope  to  become 
more  deserving  of  the  name  of  Christian.  You  are  a  gen- 
tleman, sir,  in  the  truest  and  best  sense  of  the  word,  and 
as  such  it  will  ever  be  a  pleastire  to  welcome  you  at  my 
father's  house,"  and  she  gave  him  her  card. 

A  flush  of  grateful  surprise  and  pleasure  mantled  Den- 
nis's face,  but  before  he  could  speak  she  was  gone. 

The  audience  were  now  thronging  in.  By  half  past 
eight  the  performers  were  all  in  the  back  parlor,  and  there 
was  a  brilliant  array  of  actors  and  actresses  in  varied  and 
fanciful  costume,  many  coming  to  the  house  dressed  for 
their  part.  There  were  gods  and  goddesses,  shepherds, 
shepherdesses,  and  angels,  crusaders  who  would  lake  leave 
of  languishing  ladies,  living  statuary,  and  tableaux  of  all 


A   REVELATION. 


187 


sorts.  Dennis  was  much  shocked  at  the  manner  in  which 
ladies  exposed  themselves  in  the  name  of  art,  and  for  the 
sake  of  effect  Christine  seemed  perfectly  Greek  and 
Pagan  in  this  respect,  yet  there  was  that  in  her  manner 
that  forbade  the  wanton  glance.  But  as  he  observed  tliQ 
carriage  of  the  men  around  him,  he  was  more  than  satis- 
fied that  no  plea  of  art  could  jxistify  the  *'  style,"  and  felt 
assured  that  every  pure  minded  woman  would  take  the 
same  view  if  she  realized  the  truth.  Under  the  names  of 
fashion  and  art  much  is  done  in  society  that  would  be 
simply  monstrous  on  ordinary  occasions. 

The  music,  as  far  as  possible,  was  in  character  with 
the  scenes^  The  entertainment  went  forward  with  great 
applause.  Every  one  was  radiant,  and  the  subtle  exhil- 
arating spirit  of  assured  success  glowed  in  every  eye,  and 
gave  a  richer  tone  and  coloring  to  everything. 

Christine  appeared  in  several  and  varied  characters, 
and  Dennis  had  eyes  only  for  her.  The  others  he  glanced 
over  critically  as  the  artist  in  charge,  and  then  dismissed 
them  from  his  thoughts,  but  on  Christine  his  eyes  rested 
in  a  spell-bound  admiration  that  both  amused  and  pleased 
her.  She  loved  power  of  every  kind,  and  when  she  read 
approval  in  the  cultured  and  critical  eye  of  Dennis  Fleet, 
she  knew  that  all  the  audience  were  applauding. 

But  Dennis  had  little  time  for  musing,  so  great  was  the 
strain  upon  him  to  prevent  confusion.  His  voice  excited 
great  surprise  and  applause,  many  inquiring  vainly  who  he 
was.  When  he  and  Christine  sang  together,  the  audience 
were  perfectly  carried  away,  and  stormed  and  applauded 
without  stint.  Indeed  it  seemed  that  they  could  not  be 
satisfied.  The  call  was  so  urgent  that  several  asked 
Christinelo  sing  again,  and  she  did  so  alone.  For  ren 
minutes  she  held  the  audience  perfectly  entranced,  i.nd 
none  more  so  than  Dennis.  Usually  she  was  too  cold  in 
aU  that  she  did,  but  now  in  her  excitement  she  far  surpass- 


1 88  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

ed  herself,  and  he  acknowledged  that  he  never  heard  such 
music  before. 

The  very  soul  of  song  seemed  breathed  into  her,  and 
every  nook  and  corner  of  the  house  appeared  to  vibrate 
jvith  melody.  Even  the  servants  in  distant  rooms  said  that 
it  seemed  that  an  angel  was  singing.  After  she  ceased, 
the  audience  sat  spell-boUnd  for  a  moment,  and  then  fol- 
lowed prolonged  thunders  of  applause,  the  portly  brewer, 
Mr.  Brown  himSelf,  leading  off  again  and  again. 

"  Now  let  the  tenor  sing  alone,"  he  said,  for  diough  a 
coarse  man,  he  was  hearty  and  good-natured. 

The  audience  emphatically  echoed  his  wish,  but  Den- 
nis as  decidedly  shook  his  head. 

Then  came  a  cry,  "  Miss  Ludolph  and  the  Tenor 
again,"  and  the  audience  took  it  up  with  a  clamor  that 
would  not  be  denied. 

Christine  looked  inquiringly  at  Dennis,  and  be  replied 
in  a  low  tone, 

"  You  command  me  this  evening." 

Again  she  thanked  him  with  her  eyes,  and  from  a  music 
stand  near,  chose  a  magnificent  duet  from  Mendelssohn, 
in  which  he  must  sing  several  difficult  solos. 

"  Will  that  answer  ?  "  she  asked. 

"  Act  your  pleasure.  I  am  familiar  with  it,"  he  said, 
smiling  at  the  way  she  had  circumvented  him  in  his  refusal 
to  sing  alone. 

Christine  sat  down  and  played  her  own  accompaniment, 
while  Dennis  stood  at  her  side.  He  determined  to  do  his 
best  and  prove  that  though  he  swept  a  store,  he  could  also 
do  something  else.  Many  of  the  strains  were  plaintive,  and 
his  deep  and  unconscious  feeling  for  his  fair  companion 
in  song,  gave  to  his  voice  a  depth,  and  at  times  a  pathcs 
that  both  thrilled  and  touched  the  heart,  and  there  weTe 
not  a  few  wet  eyes  in  the  audience.  Unconsciously  to 
himself  and  all  around,  he  was  singing  his  love,  and  even 


A   REVELATION. 


189 


Christine,  though  much  preoccupied  with  her  part,  won- 
dered at  the  efitect  upon  herself,  and  recognized  the  deep 
impression  made  upon  the  audience. 

As  the  last  notes  died  away  the  sliding  doors  were 
closed. 

Dennis  had  achieved  a  greater  success  than  Christine, 
because  singing  from  the  heart  he  had  touched  the  heart. 
His  applause  could  be  read  in  moist  eyes  and  expressive 
faces,  rather  than  in  noisy  hands.  She  saw  and  under- 
stood the  result.  A  sad,  disappointed  look  came  into  her 
face,  and  she  said  in  a  low,  plaintive  tone,  as  if  it  were 
wrung  from  her, 

"  There  must  be  something  wrong  about  me.  I  fear  1 
shall  never  reach  true  art.  I  can  only  win  admiration, 
never  touch  the  heart." 

Dennis  was  about  lo  speak  eagerly,  when  they  were 
overwhelmed  by  the  rush  and  confusion  attendant  on  the 
breaking  up  of  the  entertainment. 

Part  of  the  older  guests  at  once  left  for  their  homes, 
and  the  rest  stayed  for  supper. 

The  parlors  were  to  be  cleared  as  soon  as  possible  for 
dancing.  Christine  was  joined  by  her  father,  who  had  sat 
in  the  audience,  scarcely  believing  his  eyes,  much  less  his 
ears.  Was  that  the  young  man  who  was  blacking  old 
Schwartz's  boots  the  other  day  ? 

His  daughter  was  overwhelmed  with  compliments,  but 
she  took  them  very  coolly  and  quietly,  for  her  heart  was 
full  of  bitterness.  That  which  her  ambitious  spirit  most 
desired  she  could  not  reach,  and  to  the  degree  that  she 
loved  art,  wasi  her  disappointment  keen.  She  almost  en- 
Yied  poor  Denrtis,  but  she  knew  not  the  secret  of  his  suc- 
cess ;  nor  did  he,  either,  in  truth.  His  old  manner  returned, 
and  he  busied  himself  in  rapidly  packing  up  everything 
that  he  had  brought.  Mr'.  Ludolph,  who  had  received  a 
brief  explanation  from  Christine,  came  and  said  kindly, 
9 


I90  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

"  Why,  Fleet,  you  have  blosson  ed  out  strongly  to-day.  * 

"  Indeed,  sir,  I  think  I  have  never  had  a  more  rigorous 
pruning,"  was  the  reply. 

When  the  story  had  been  told  him  in  full,  he  under- 
stood the  remark.  Christine  was  waiting  for  the  crowd  to 
disperse  somewhat,  in  order  to  speak  to  Dennis  also,  for 
her  seube  of  justice  and  genuine  admiration  impelled  her 
to  warm  and  sincere  acknowledgment.  But  at  that  mo- 
ment Mr.  Mellen  came  in  exclaiming, — 

"  Miss  Ludolph,  they  are  all  waiting  for  you  to  lead  the 
dance,  for  to  you  is  given  this  honor  by  acclamation,  and 
I  plead  your  promise  to  be  my  partner,"  and  he  carried 
her  off,  she  meaning  to  return  as  soon  as  possible,  as  she 
sujjposed  Dennis  would  remain. 

A  moment  after,  light  airy  music  was  heard  in  the  front 
parlor,  followed  by  the  rhythmical  cadence  of  light  feet  and 
the  rustle  of  silks  like  a  breeze  through  a  forest. 

For  some  reason,  as  she  went  away  Dennis's  heart 
sank  within  him.  The  strong  excitements  of  the  day  re- 
acted, and  a  strange  sense  of  weariness  and  despondency 
crept  over  him.  The  gay  music  in  the  other  room  seemed 
plaintive  and  far  away,  and  the  tripping  feet  sounded  like 
the  patter  of  rain  on  Autumn  leaves.  The  very  hghts  ap- 
peared to  turn  dimmer,  and  the  color  to  fade  out  of  his  hfe. 

Mechanically  he  packed  up  the  few  remaining  articles, 
to  be  called  for  in  the  morning,  and  then  leaned  heavily 
against  a  pillar,  intending  to  rest  a  moment  before  going 
out  into  the  night  alone. 

Some  one  jDushed  back  the  sliding- door  a  little  and 
passed  through  the  room.  Through  the  opening  he  caught 
a  glimpse  of  the  gay  scene  within.  Suddenly  Christine 
appeared  fioating  lightly  through  the  waltz  in  her  gauzy 
drapery  as  if  in  a  while  \apory  cloud.  Through  the  nar- 
row opening  she  seemed  a  radiant,  living  portrait.  But 
her  partner  whirled  her  out  of  his  line  «^^  vision.     Thus  in 


A  REVF.LATION. 


191 


the  mazes  of  the  dance  she  kept  appearing  and  disappear- 
ing, flashing  on  sight  one  moment,  leaving  a  idUank  in  the 
crowded  room  the  next. 

"  So  it  will  ever  be,  I  suppose,"  he  said  to  himself  bit- 
terly j    "chance  and  stolen  glimpses  my  only  privilege." 

Again  she  appeared,  smiling  archly  on  the  man  whose 
arm  clasped  her  waist. 

A  frown  black  as  night  gathered  on  Dennis's  brow — 
then  a  sudden  pallor  overspread  his  face  to  his  very 
lips. 

The  revelation  had  come  1  Then  for  the  first  time  he 
knew — knew  it  as  if  written  in  letters  of  fire  before  him, 
that  he  loved  Christine  Ludolph. 

At  first  the  knowledge  stunned  and  bewildered  him, 
and  his  mind  was  a  confused  blur;  then  as  she  appeared 
again,  smiling  upon  and  in  the  embrace  of  another  man, 
a  sharp  sword  seemed  to  pierce  his  heart. 

Dennis  was  no  faint  shadow  of  a  man  who  had  frittered 
away  what  Htlle  heart  he  originally  had,  in  numberless 
flirtations.  He  belonged  to  the  male  species,  with  some- 
thing of  the  pristine  vigor  of  the  first  man,  who  said  of 
the  one  woman  of  all  the  world  "  This  is  now  bone  of  my 
bones,  and  flesh  of  my  flesh ; "  and  one  whom  he  had 
first  seen  but  a  few  short  months  since,  now  seemed  to 
belong  to  him  by  the  highest  and  divinest  right.  But 
could  he  ever  claim  his  own  1 

In  his  morbid,  wearied  state,  there  seemed  a  "  great 
gulf  fixed  "  between  them.  For  a  moment  he  fairly  felt 
faint  and  sick,  as  if  he  had  received  a  wound.  He  was 
startled  by  hearing  Miss  Winthrop  say  at  his  side — 

"  Mr.  Fleet,  you  will  not  leave  yet.  I  have  many  friends 
wishing  an  introduction  to  you.  What  is  the  matter  ?  You 
really  look  sick."' 

At  her  voice  he  flushed  painfully.  He  was  so  vividly 
conscious  of  his  love  himself  that  he  felt  mat  every  one 


192 


BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 


else  must  be  able  to  see  it,  and  darkness  and  solitude  now 
seemed  a  refuge.  Recovering  himself  by  a  great  effort, 
he  said — 

*'  Pardon  me,  I  do — I  am  not  well — nothing  is  the  mat- 
ter— a  little  rest  and  I  will  be  myself  again." 

"  No  wonder.  You  have  been  taxed  every  way  beyond 
mortal  endurance,  and  I  think. that  it  is  a  shame  the  way 
you  have  been  treated.  Pray  do  not  judge  Chicago  so- 
ciety altogether  by  what  you  have  seen  here.  Let  me  get 
you  some  refreshment,  and  then  I  will  acquaint  you  with 
some  people  who  can  recognize  a  gentleman  when  they 
meet  him." 

"  No,  Miss  Winthrop,"  said  Dennis  courteously  but 
firmly,  "  you  are  not  in  your  own  home,  and  by  staying  I 
would  not  accept  your  hospitality.  I  appreciate  your  kind- 
ness deeply,  and  thank  your  friends  who  have  expressed  a 
willingness  to  make  mj^acquaintance.  It  would  not  be 
right  to  stay  longer  in  this  house  than  is  necessary.  I  do 
not  feel  resentful.  I  have  no  room  in  my  memory  for  Miss 
Brown  and  her  actions,  but  at  the  same  time  self-respect 
requires  that  I  go  at  once,"  and  he  took  his  hat. 

"  J  am  not  surprised  that  you  feel  as  you  do.  But  give 
me  the  pleasure  of  welcoming  you  at  my  own  home  as 
soon  as  possible,"  she  said,  and  gave  her  hand  to  him  in 
parting. 

Dennis  took  it  respectfully  and  bowed  low,  saying, 

"  I  shall  not  willingly  deny  myself  so  great  a  pleasure," 
and  was  gone. 

"  Christine  came  in  a  few  moments  later,  and  found 
only  servants  clearing  the  room  for  dancing. 

"  Where  is  Mr.  Fleet  ?  "  she  asked. 

"  Gone,  mum." 

"  Yes,''  said  .Miss  Winthrop,  coming  in  at  the  same 
time,  "  he  has  gone  now  in  very  truth  ;  and  I  don't  think 
the  power  ejdsts  that  could  lead  him  to  darken  these  doors 


A   REVELATION. 


193 


again.  I  doubt  if  I  ever  come  myself.  I  never  saw  a 
clearer  instance  of — of — well — shoddy." 

"  It  seems  to  me  that  you  Christians  are  as  proud  as 
any  of  us." 

"  Isn't  there  a  difference  between  pride  and  selfre- 
sjrect?  I  am  satisiied  that  if  Miss  Brown  were  in  trouble, 
or  poor,  Mr.  Fleet  would  be  the  first  to  help  her.  O  Chris- 
tine, we  have  treated  him  shamefully !  " 

"  You  seem  to  take  a  wonderful  interest  in  this  un- 
known knight  in  rusty  armor."  (Dennis's  dress  was  de- 
cidedly threadbare.) 

"  I  do,"  said  the  impulsive  girl  frankly,  "  because  he  is 
wonderfully  interesting.  'What  man  of  all  the  large  audi- 
ence present  to-night,  could  have  acted  the  part  he  did. 
I  am  satisfied  that  that  man  is  by  birth  and  education  a 
gentleman.  Are  you  ready,  with  your  aristocratic  notions, 
to  recognize  chiefly  Miss  Brown's  title  to  position  ?  What 
could  her  coat-of-arms  be  but  the  dollar  symbol  and  beer 
barrel  ? » 

"  Come,  remember  she  is  our  hostess." 

"  You  are  right ;  I  should  not  speak  so  here ;  but  my 
indignation  gets  the  better  of  me." 

"  Would  you  invite  him  to  your  house  ?  " 

"  Certainly.  I  have ;  and  what  is  more,  he  has  prom- 
ised to  come.  Supposing  that  he  is  poor,  are  not  many 
of  your  noblemen  as  poor  as  poverty  ?  My  parlors  shall 
be  haunted  only  by  men  of  ability  and  character." 

"  You  are  not  going  to  shut  out  this  little  heathen," 
said  Christine,  putting  her  arm  about  her  friend. 

"  Never !  "  said  Miss  Winthrop,  returning  the  embrace 
with  double  '.^armth.  Then  she  added  sadly,  "  You  are  not 
an  unbeliever  from  conviction  and  knowledge,  Christine, 
but  from  training  and  association.  While  I  admire  and 
honor  your  father  as  a  splenciid  and  gifted  man,  I  regret 
his  and  your  skepticism  more  deeply  than  you  can  ever 
know." 


194 


BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 


"  Well,  Susie,"  said  Christine  with  a  smile,  "  if  they  shut 
out  such  as  you  from  your  Paradise,  I  do  not  wish  to  go 
there." 

"  If  with  my  clear  knowledge  of  the  conditions  of  en- 
trance, I  shut  myself  out,  I  will  have  no  right  to  complain," 
said  Miss  Winthrop  sadly. 

But  the  absence  of  tw«.such  belles  could  not  long  re- 
main unnoted,  and  having  been  discovered,  they  were 
pounced  upon  by  half  a  dozen  young  gentlemen,  clamor- 
ous for  the  honor  df  their  hand  for  the  "  German." 

In  spite  of  herself,  Christine  was  vexed  and  annoyed. 
Dennis  had  seemed,  in  his  obscurity,  a  nice  little  bit  of 
personal  property,  that  she  could  use  and  order  about  as 
she  pleased.  He  had  been  so  subservient  and  eager  to 
do  her  will,  that  she  had  never  thought  of  him  otherwise 
than  her  "  hinnble  servant."  But  now  her  own  hand  had  sud- 
denly given  him  the  role  of  a  find  gentleman.  Christine 
was  too  logical  to  think  of  continuing  to  order  about,  as 
she  might  Pat  Murphy,  a  man  who  could  sing  Mendels- 
sohn's music  as  Dennis  had. 

She  congratulated  herself  that  the  arrangement  of  the 
store  was  nearly  completed,  and  only  one  show-room  un- 
finished. 

"  I  suppose  he  will  be  ver}'  dignified  when  we  meet 
again,"  she  thought  to  herself  "  I  should  not  be  at  all 
surprised  if  my  impulsive  little  friend  Susie  loses  her 
heart  to  him.  Well,  I  suppose  she  can  to  any  one  she 
choses.  As  for  me,  rich  or  poor,  stupid  or  gifted,  the 
men  of  this  land  are  all  alike,"  and  with  a  half  sigh  she 
plunged  resolutely  into  the  gayeties  of  the  evening,  as  if 
to  escape  from  herself 


NIGHT  THOUGHTS. 


«9S 


CHAPTER  XXVI, 

NIGHT      THOUGHTS. 

Dennis  passed  out  of  the  heavy,  massive  entrance  tc 
the  wealthy  brewer's  mansion  with  a  sense  of  relief  as  if 
escaping  from  prison.  The  duskyness  and  solitude  of 
the  street  seemed  a  grateful  refuge,  and  the  night  wind 
was  to  his  flushed  face  like  a  cool  hand  laid  on  a  feverish 
brow.  He  was  indeed  glad  to  be  alone,  for  his  was  one 
of  those  deep,  earnest  natures  that  cannot  rush  to  the 
world  in  garrulous  confidence  when  disturbed  and  per- 
plexed. There  are  many  sincere  but  shallow  people  who 
must  tell  of  and  talk  away  every  passing  emotion.  Not 
of  the  abundance  of  their  hearts,  for  abundance  there  is 
not,  but  of  the  uppermost  thing  of  their  hearts  their 
mouths  must  speak,  even  though  the  subjects  be  of  the 
delicate  nature  that  would  naturally  be  hidden.  Such 
mental  constitutions  are  at  least  healthful.  Concealed 
trouble  never  preys  upon  them  like  the  canker  in  the  bud. 
Everything  comes  to  the  surface  and  is  thrown  off. 

But  at  first  Dennis  scarcely  dared  to  recognize  the 
truth  himself,  ^d  the  thought  of  even  telling  his  mother, 
was  repugnant  For  half  an  hour  he  walked  the  streets 
in  a  sort  of  stupor.  He  was  conscious  only  of  a  heavy, 
achuig  heart  and  a  wearied,  confused  brain.  All  the  time, 
however,  he  knew  an  event  had  occurred  that  must  for 
good  or  evil  affect  his  entire  existence  ;  but  he  shrank 
with  nervous  dread  from  grappling  with  the  problem.  As 
the  cold  air  refreshed  and  revived  him,  his  strong,  practi- 


ig6  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY.       " 

cal  mind  took  up  the  question  almost  without  volition  or 
his  part,  and  by  reason  of  his  morbid,  wearied  state,  only 
the  darl<:  and  discouraging  side  was  presented.  The 
awakening  to  his  love  was  a  very  different  thing  to  Den- 
nis, and  to  the  majority  in  this  troubled  world,  from  the 
blissful  consciousness  of  Adam  when  for  the  first  time  he 
saw  the  fair  being  whom  he«iight  woo  at  his  leisure,  amid 
embowering  roses,  without  fear  or  thought  of  a  rival. 

To  Dennis  the  fact  of  his  love,  so  far  from  promising 
to  be  the  source  of  delightful  romance  and  enchantment, 
was  clearly  seen  the  hardest  and  most  practical  question 
of  a  life  full  of  such  questions. 

In  his  strong  and  growing  excitement  he  spoke  to  him- 
self as  to  a  second  person, 

"  O,  I  see  it  all  now.  Poor,  blind  fool  that  I  was  to 
think  that  by  coveting  and  securing  every  moment  in  her 
presence  possible,  I  was  only  learning  to  love  art.  As  I 
saw  her  to-night,  so  radiant  and  beautiful,  and  yet  in  the 
embrace  of  another  man,  and  evidently  an  ardent  admirer, 
what  was  art  to  me  !  As  well  might  a  starving  man  seek 
to  satisfy  himself  by  wandering  through  an  old  Greek 
temple,  as  for  me  to  turn  to  Art  alone.  One  crumb  of 
warm,  manifested  love  from  her  would  be  worth  more 
than  all  the  cold,  abstract  beauty  in  the  universe.  And 
yet  what  chance  have  I .''  What  can  I  hope  for  more  than 
a  passing  thought  and  a  little  kindly  condescending  inter- 
est ?  Clerk  and  man-of-all-work  in  a  store,  poor  and 
heavily  burdened,  the  idea  of  my  loving  one  of  the  most 
wealthy,  admired,  and  aristocratic  ladies  in  Chicago !  It 
is  all  very  well  in  story  books  for  peasants  to  fall  in  love 
with  princesses,  but  in  practical  Chicago  the  fact  of  my 
attachment  to  Miss  Ludolph  would  be  regarded  as  one  of 
the  richest  jokes  of  the  season,  and  such  a  proof  of  coun- 
try rusticity  and  folly  by  Mr.  Ludolph,  as  would  at  once 
secure  my  return  to  pastoral  life." 


NIGHT  THOUGHTS. 


197 


Then  hope  whispered,  "  But  you  can  achieve  position 
and  wealth  as  others  have,  and  then  can  speak  your  mind 
from  the  standpoint  of  equality." 

But  Dennis  was  in  a  mood  to  see  only  the  hopeless 
side  that  night,  and  exclaimed  almost  aloud — "Non- 
sense !  Can  it  be  even  imagined  that  she,  besieged  by 
the  most  gifted  and  rich  of  the  city,  will  wait  for  a  poor 
unknown  admirer?  Mr.  Mellen,  I  understand  approaches 
her  from  every  vantage  ground  save  that  of  a  noble  char- 
acter, but  in  the  fashionable  world  how  little  thought  is 
given  to  this  draw-back,"  and  in  his  perturbation  he  strode 
rapidly  and  aimlessly  on,  finding  some  relief  in  mere  phys- 
ical activity. 

Suddenly  his  hasty  steps  ceased,  and  even  in  the  dusk 
of  the  street,  hi3  face  gleamed  out  distinctly,  so  great  was 
its  pallor.  Like  a  ray  of  light,  a  passage  from  the  Word 
of  JGod  revealed  to  him  his  situation  in  a  new  aspect.  It 
seemed  to  him  almost  that  some  one  had  whispered  the 
words  in  his  ear,  so  distinctly  did  they  present  them- 
selves— 

"  Be  ye  not  unequally  yoked  together  with  unbelievers." 

Slowly -and  painfully  he  said  to  himself,  as  if  recogniz- 
ing the  most  helpless  barrier  that  had  yet  been  dwelt 
upon — 

"  Christine  Ludolph  is  an  infidel." 

Not  only  the  voice  of  reason,  and  of  the  practical 
world,  but  also  the  voice  of  God  seemed  to  forbid  his 
love,  and  the  conviction  that  he  must  give  it  all  up,  became 
as  clear  as  it  was  painful.  The  poor  fellow  leaneil  his 
head  against  the  shaggy  bark  of  an  elm  that  stood  in  a 
shadowy  square  which  the  street  lamps  could  but  fo  ntly 
penetrate,  and  watered  the  gnarled  roots  with  manj  hot 
tears. 

The  night  wind  swayed  the  budding  branches  oi   the 
great  tree  and  they  sighed  over  him  as  if  in  sympathj 
9* 


198  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

The  struggle  within  his  soul  was  indeed  biller,  for 
though  thus  far  he  had  spoken  hopelessly,  he  had  not 
been  altogether  hopeless,  but  now  that  conscience  raised 
its  impassable  \Yall  high  as  heaven,  which  he  must  not 
break  through,  his  pain  was  so  great  as  to  almost  unman 
him  and  only  such  tears  as  men  can  weep  fell  from  his 
eyes.     In  anguish  he  exclaimed — 

"  That  which  might  have  been  the  chief  blessing  of 
life  has  become  my  greatest  misfortune." 

Abovj  him  the  gale  caused  two  fraying  limbs  to  ap- 
pear to  moan  in  echo  of  the  suffering  beneath. 

'  'I'his  then  must  be  the  end  of  my  prayers  in  her  be- 
half— my  ardent  hope  and  purpose  to  lead  her  to  the 
truth — she  to  walk  through  honored  sunny  paths  to  ever- 
lasting shame  and  night,  and  I  through  dark  and  painful 
way-  to  light  and  peace,  if  in  this  bitter  test  I  remain 
fiiiliful.  Surely  th^'re  is  much  to  try  one's  faith.  And 
yet  it  must  be  so  as  far  as  human  foresight  can  judge." 

Then  a  great  pity  for  her  swelled  his  heart,  for  he  felt 
that  her  case  was  the  saddest  after  all,  and  his  tears  tlowed 
faster  thai  ever. 

Human  voices  now  startled  him — some  late  revellers 
passing  homeward.  The  tears  and  emotion,  of  which  we 
never  think  of  being  ashamed  when  alone  with  Nature 
and  its  Author,  he  dreaded  to  have  seen  by  his  fellows, 
and  hastily  wiping  his  eyes,  he  slunk  into  the  deeper 
shadow  of  the  tree,  and  they  passed  on.  'I'hen,  an  old 
trait  asserting  itself,  he  condemned  his  own  weakness  and 
wavering  sj^irit.  Stepping  from  the  sheltering  trunk 
against  which  he  was  leaning,  he  stood  strong  and  erect. 

The  winds  were  hushed  as  if  expectant  in  the  branch- 
es above — - 

'•  Dennis  Fleet,"  he  said,  "  you  must  put  your  foot  on 
this  fcjllv  here  and  now." 

He  bared  his  head  and  looked  upward. 


NIGHT   THOUGHTS.  I99 

"  O  God,"  he  said  solemnly,  "  if  this  is  contrary  to 
Thy  will— Thy  will  be  done." 

He  paused  a  moment  reverently,  and  then  turned  od 
his  heel  and  strode  resolutely  homeward. 

A  gust  of  wind  crashed  the  branches  overhead  togeth 
er  like  the  clash  of  cymbals  in  victory. 


The  early  Spring  dawn  was  tinging  the  eastern  horizon 
before  the  mansion  of  the  rich  brewer  was  darkened  and 
the  gay  revel  ceased.  All  the  long  night,  Hght  airy  music 
had  caused  late  passers  by  to  pause  a  moment  to  listen, 
and  to  pity  or  envy  the  throng  within  as  disposition  might 
dictate.  Mr.  Brown  was  a  man  who  prided  himself  on 
lavish  .and  rather  coarse  hospitality.  A  table  groaning 
under  costly  dishes,  and  every  variety  of  liquor  that 
diseased  appetite  could  crave,  was  the  crowning  feature, 
the  blissful  climax  of  all  his  entertainments  ;  and  society 
from  its  highest  circles  furnished  an  abundance  of  anxious 
candidates  for  his  suppers,  who  ate  and  criticised,  drank 
to,  and  disparaged,  their  plebeian  host.  - 

Mrs.  Brown  was  heavy  in  every  sense  of  the  word,  and 
with  her  huge  person  encased  in  acres  of  silk  and  festooned 
with  no  end  of  black  lace,  she  waddled  about  and  smiled 
and  nodded  good-naturedly  at  everybody  and  everything. 

It  was  just  the  place  for  a  fashionable  revel,  where  the 
gross  repulsive  features  of  coarse  excess  are  veiled  and 
masked  somewhat  by  the  glamour  of  outward  courtesy 
and  good-breeding. 

At  first  Christine  entered  into  the  dance  with  great 
zest  and  a  decided  sense  of  relief. 

She  was  disappointed  and  out  of  sorts  with  herself. 
Again  she  had  failed  in  the  object  of  her  intense  ambition, 
and  though  conscious  that  through  the  excitement  of  the 
occasion,  she  had  never  sung  better,  yet  she  plainly  saw  in 


200  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

the  different  results  of  her  singing  and  that  of  Dennis 
Fleet  that  there  was  depth  in  the  human  heart  which  she 
♦;ould  not  touch.  She  could  secure  only  admiration,  super- 
ficial applause.  The  sphere  of  the  true  artist  who  can 
touch  and  sway  the  popular  heart,  seemed  beyond  her  abil- 
ity. By  voice  or  pencil  she  had  never  yet  reached  it.  She 
had  too  much  mind  to  mistake  the  character  of  the  admi- 
ration she  excited,  and  was  far  too  ambitious  to  be  satisfied 
with  the  mere  praise  bestowed  on  a  highly  accomplished 
girl.  She  aspired — determined  to  be  among  the  first,  and 
to  be  a  second  rate  imitator  in  the  world  of  Art  was  to  her 
the  agony  of  a  disappointed  life.  And  yet  to  imitate  with 
accuracy  and  skill,  not  with  sympathy,  was  the  only  power 
she  had  as  yet  developed.  She  sa<v  the  limitations  of  her 
success  more  clearly  than  any  one  else,  and  chafed  bitter- 
ly at  the  invisible  bounds  she  could  not  pass. 

The  excitement  of  the  dance  enabled  her  to  banish 
thoughts  that  were  both  painful  and  humiliating.  More- 
over to  a  nature  so  active  and  full  of  physical  vigor,  the 
swift,  graceful  motion  was  a  source  of  keen  enjoyment. 

But  when  after  supper  many  of  the  ladies  were  silly, 
and  the  gentlemen  were  either  stupid  or  excited,  as  might 
be  the  action  of  the  "  invisible  spirit  of  wine  "  upon  their 
several  constitutions — when  after  many  glasses  of  cham- 
pagne Mr.  Mellen  began  to  effervesce  in  frothy  sentimental- 
ity, and  a  style  of  love-making  simply  nauseating  to  one 
of  Christine's  nature,  she  looked  around  for  her  father  in 
order  to  escape  from  the  scenes  that  were  becoming  re- 
volting. 

I'hough  of  earth  only  in  all  the  sources  of  her  life  and 
hopes,  she  was  not  earthy.  If  her  spirit  could  not  soar  and 
sin^  in  the  sky,  it  also  could  not  grovel  in  tiie  mire  of  gross 
matcrialil^. 

Sonic  little  tune  therefore  before  the  company  broke  up, 
on  the  plea  of  not  feeling  well,  she  lured  her  father  away 


NIGHT  THOUGHTS.  201 

from  his  wine,  cigars,  and  a  knot  of  gentlemen  who  were 
beginning  to  talk  a  little' thick  and  incoherently,  and  ma- 
king their  adieux  amid  many  protestations  against  their 
early  departure,  drove  homeward.     - 

"  How  did  you  enjoy  yourself? "  asked  her  fathei. 

"  Verj'  much  the  early  part  of  the  evening,  not  at  all 
the  latter  part.  To  sum  up,  I  am  disgusted  with  Mr.  Mel- 
ten  and  these  Browns  in  general,  and  myself  in  particular." 

"What  is  the  matter  with  Mr.  Mellen  ?  I  understand 
that  the  intriguing  mammas  consider  him  the  largest  game 
in  the  city." 

"  When  hunting  degenerates  into  the  chase  and  capture 
of  insects,  you  may  style  him  game.  Between  his  cham- 
pagne and  silly  love-making,  he  was  as  bad  as  a  dose  of 
ipecac." 

Christine  spoke  freely  to  her  father  of  her  admirers, 
usually  making  them  the  themes  of  satire  and  jest. 

"  And  what  is  the  trouble  with  our  entertainers  ?  " 

"  I  am  sorry  to  speak  so  of  anyone  whose  hospitality  I 
have  accepted,  but  unless  it  is  your  wish  I  hope  never  to 
accept  it  again.  They  all  smell  of  their  beer.  Everything 
is  so  coarse,  lavish,  and  ostentatious.  They  tell  you  as 
through  a  brazen  trumpet  on  every  side  '  We  are  rich.* " 

"  They  give  magnificent  suppers,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph  in 
apology. 

"  More  correctly,  the  French  cook  they  employ  gives 
them.  I  do  not  object  to  the  nicest  of  suppers,  but  prefer 
that  the  Browns  be  not  on  the  carte  de  menu.  From  the 
moment  our  artistic  programme  ended,  and  the  entertain- 
ment fell  into  their  hands,  it  began  to  degenerate  into  an 
orgy.  Nothing  but  the  instinctive  restraints  of  good  breed 
ing  prevents  such  occasions  from  ending  in  a  drunken 
revel." 

"  You  are  severe.  Mr.  Brown's  company  is  not  a  bad 
cype  of  the  entertainments  that  prevail  in  fashionable  life." 


202  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

"  Well  it  may  be  true,  but  they  never  seemed  to  me  so 
lacking  in  good  taste  and  refinement,  before.  Wait  till  we 
dispense  choice  viands  and  wines  to  choicer  spirits  in  our 
own  land,  and  I  will  guarantee  a  marvellously  wide  differ- 
ence. Then  the  eye,  the  ear,  the  mind,  shall  be  feasted, 
as  well  as  the  lower  sense." 

"  Well  I  do  not  see  why  you  should  be  disgusted  with 
yourself.  I  am  sure  that  you  covered  yourself  with  glory, 
and  was  the  belle  of  the  occasion." 

"  That  is  no  great  honor,  considering  the  occasion. 
Father,  strange  as  it  may  seem  to  you,  I  envied  your  man- 
of-all-work,  to-night.  Did  you  not  mark  the  effect  of  his 
singing  ?  " 

"  Yes,  and  felt  it  in  a  way  that  I  cannot  explain  to 
myself.  His  tones  seemed  to  thrill  and  stir  my  very  heart. 
I  have  not  been  so  affected  by  music  for  years.  At  first  I 
thought  it  was  surprise  at  hearing  him  sing  at  all,  but  I 
soon  found  that  it  was  something  in  the  music  itself." 

"  And  that  something  I  fear  I  can  never  grasp — never 
attain." 

"  Why,  my  dear,  they  applauded  you  to  the  echo." 

"  I  would  rather  see  one  moist  eye  as  the  tribute  to  my 
singing,  than  to  be  deafened  by  noisy  applause.  I  fear  I 
shall  never  reach  high  art.  Men's  hearts  sleep  when  I  do 
my  best." 

"  I  think  you  are  slightly  mistaken  there,  judging  from 
your  train  of  admirers,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph  turning  off  a  dis- 
agreeable subject  with  a  jest.  The  shrewd  man  of  the 
world  guessed  the  secret  of  her  failure.  She  must  feel 
herself,  before  she  could  touch  feeling.  But  he  had  syste- 
matically sought  to  chill  and  benumb  her  nature,  meaning 
it  to  awake  and  revive  at  just  the  time,  and  under  just  the 
circumstances  that  should  accord  with  his  controlling  am- 
bition. 

Then  reverting  to  Dennis  he  continued. 


DARKNESS. 


2C3 


"It  won't  answer  for  Fleet  to  sweep  the  store  any 
longer,  after  the  part  he  played  to-night.  Indeed  I  doubt 
if  he  would  be  willing  to.  Not  only  he,  but  the  world  will 
know  that  he  is  capable  of  better  things.  What  has  oc- 
curred will  awaken  inquiry,  and  may  soon  secure  him  good 
business  offers.  I  do  not  intend  to  part  readily  with  so 
capable  a  young  fellow.  He  does  well  whatever  is  re- 
quired, and  therefore  I  shall  promote  him  as  fast  as  is  pru- 
dent.    I  think  I  can  make  him  of  great  use  to  me." 

"  That  is  another  thing  that  provokes  me,"  said  Chris- 
tine. "  Only  yesterday  morning  he  seemed  such  a  useful 
humble  creature,  and  last  evening  through  my  own  foil} 
he  developed  into  a  fine  gentleman;  and  I  shall  have  to 
say  '  By  your  leave,  sir ; '  '  Will  you  please  do  this  ? ' — if  1 
dare  ask  anything  at  all." 

"  I  am  not  so  sure  of  that,"  said  her  father.  "  My  im- 
pression is  that  Fleet  has  too  much  good  sense  to  put  on 
airs  in  the  store.  But  I  will  give  him  more  congenial 
work ;  and  as  one  of  the  young  gentleman  clerks,  we  can 
ask  him  up  now  and  then  to  sing  with  us.  I  should  much 
fcnjoy  trying  some  of  our  G^^rrvan  music  with  him." 


204  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 


CHAPTER  XXVIl. 

DARKNESS. 

The  next  morning  Christine  did  not  appear  at  the  late 
breakfast,  where  her  father  with  contracted  brow  and 
capricious  appetite,  sat  alone.  Among  the  other  unex- 
pected results  of  the  preceding  day  she  had  taken  a  very 
severe  cold,  and  this,  with  the  reaction  from  fatigue  and 
excitement,  caused  her  to  feel  so  seriously  ill  that  she 
found  it  impossible  to  rise.  Her  father  looked  at  her,  and 
was  alarmed,  for  her  cheeks  were  flushed  with  fever,  her 
head  was  aching  sadly,  and  she  appeared  as  if  threatened 
with  one  of  those  dangerous  diseases  whose  earlier  symp- 
toms are  so  obscure,  and  yet  so  much  alike.  She  tried  to 
smile,  but  her  lip  quivered,  and  she  turned  her  face  to 
the  wall. 

The  philosophy  of  Mr.  Ludolph  and  his  daughter  was 
evidently  adapted  to  fair  weather  and  smooth  sailing. 
Sickness,  disease,  and  the  possible  results,  were  things 
that  both  dreaded  more  than  they  ever  confessed  to  each 
other.  It  was  most  natural  that  they  should,  for  only  in 
health  or  life  coukl  they  enjoy  or  hope  for  anything.  By 
tht^ir  own  belief  their  horizon  was  narrowed  down  to  time 
and  earth,  and  they  could  look  for  nothing  beyond.  In 
"ilr.  Ludolph's  imperious,  resolute  nature,  sickness  always 
uwakeiied  anger  as  well  as  anxiety.  It  seemed  like  an 
enemy  threatening  his  dearest  hopes  and  most  cherished 
ambition,  therefore  the  heavy  frown  upon  his  brow  as  he 
pushed  away  the  scarcely  tasted  breakfast. 


DARKNESS. 


205 


To  Christine  the  thought  of  death  was  simply  horrible, 
and  with  the  whole  strength  of  her  will  she  ever  sought  to 
banisn  it.  To  her  it  meant  corruption,  dust,  nothingness. 
With  a  few  drawbacks  she  had  enjoyed  life  abundantly, 
and  clung  to  it  with  the  tenacity  of  one  who  believed  it 
was  all.  With  the  exception  of  some  slight  passing  indis- 
position, both  she  and  her  father  were  seldom  sick ;  and 
for  a  number  of  years  now  had  voyaged  on  over  smooth, 
sunny  seas  of  prosperity. 

Christine's  sudden  prostration  on  the  morning  follow- 
ing the  company,  was  a  painful  surprise  to  both. 

"  I  will  have  Dr.  Arten  call  at  once,"  he  said,  at  part- 
ing, "  and  will  come  up  from  the  store  early  in  the  day  to 
see  you." 

And  Christine  was  left  alone  with  her  French  maid. 

Her  mind  was  too  clouded  and  disturbed  by  fever  to 
think  coherently,  and  yet  a  vague  sense  of  danger — 
trouble — oppressed  her,  and  while  lying  in  a  half-uncon- 
scious state  between  sleeping  and  waking,  a  thousand 
fantastic  visions  presented  themselves.  But  in  them  all 
the  fiery  Cross  and  Dennis  Fleet  took  some  part.  At 
times  the  Cross  seemed  to  blaze  and  threaten  to  burn  her 
to  a  cinder,  while  he  stood  by  with  stern  accusing  face. 
The  hght  from  the  Cross  made  him  luminous  also,  and  the 
glare  was  so  terrible  that  she  would  start  up  with  a  cry  of 
fear.  Again,  they  would  both  recede  till  in  the  far  dis- 
tance they  shone  like  a  faint  star,  and  then  the  black  dark- 
ness that  gathered  round  her  was  more  dreadful  than  the 
light,  and  with  her  eyes  closed  she  would  reach  out  her 
hot  hands  for  the  light  to  return.  Once  or  twice  it  shojie 
upon  her  \\ith  soft  mellow  light,  and  Dennis  stood  point- 
ing to  it,  pleading  so  earnestly  and  tenderly  that  tears 
gathered  in  her  eyes.  Then  all  was  blurred  and  distorted 
again. 

Within  an  hour  after  her  father  left,  she  found  Dr, 


2o6  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

Arten  feeling  her  pulse  and  examining  her  symptoms. 
With  a  great  effort  she  roused  herself,  and  looking  at  the 
Doctor  with  an  eager  inquiring  face  said: 

"  Doctor,  tell  me  the  truth.     What  is  the  matter  ? " 

He  tried  to  smile  and  evade  her  question,  but  she 
would  not  let  him. 

"  Well,  really.  Miss  Ludolph,"  he  said,  "  we  can  hardly 
tell  yet  what  is  the  matter.  You  have  evidently  caught  a 
very  severe  cold,  and  I  hope  that  is  all.  When  I  come 
this  evening  I  may  be  able  to  speak  more  definitely.  In 
the  mean  time  I  will  give  you  something  to  soothe  and  re 
duce  your  fever." 

The  French  maid  followed  the  Doctor  out,  leaving  the 
door  ajar  in  her  haste,  and  in  an  audible  whisper  said: 

"I  say,  Docteur,  is  it  not  de  small-pox  ?  Dare  is  so 
much  around.  Tell  me  true,  for  I  must  leave  dis  very 
minute." 

"  Hush,  you  fool,"  said  the  Doctor,  and  they  passed 
out  of  hearing. 

A  sickening  dread  made  Christine's  heart  almost  stand 
still.  When  the  woman  returned  she  watched  her  most 
narrowly  as  she  asked  : 

"  What  did  the  Doctor  say  to  you  ?" 

The  maid  replied  in  French  that  he  said  she  must  be 
still  and  not  talk. 

"  But  you  asked  him  if  I  had  the  small-pox.  What  did 
he  say  ?" 

"Ah  Mademoiselle,  you  make  one  grand  meestake.  I 
ask  for  a  small  box  to  keep  your  medicine  in  dat  it  make 
no  smell." 

From  the  woman's  lie  in  evading  her  question,  and 
from  the  fact  that  she  was  redolent  with  camphor  used  as 
a  preventive,  and  kept  as  far  away  as  she  could,  near  the 
windows,  Christine  gathered  a  most  painful  confirmation 
of  her  fears.  For  a  time  she  lay  almost  paralyzed  by 
dread. 


DARKNESS. 


207 


Then  as  the  medicine  relieved  her  of  fever  and  un 
clouded  her  mind,  thought  and  conscience  awoke  with 
terrible  and  resistless  power.  As  never  before  she  real- 
ized what  cold  dark  depths  were  just  beneath  hei  gay 
pleasure-loving  life — and  how  suddenly  skies  bright  and 
radiant  with  the  richer  promise  of  the  future,  could  be- 
come black  and  threatening.  Never  had  earthly  life 
seemed  so  attractive,  never  had  her  own  prospects  seemed 
so  brilliant,  and  her  hopes  of  fame,  wealth,  and  happiness 
in  her  future  German  villa  more  dazzling  than  now  when 
tliey  stood  out  against  the  dark  back-ground  of  her  fears. 

"  If  instead  of  going  forward  to  all  this  delight,  I  become 
an  object  of  terror  and  loathing  even  before  I  die,  and 
something  that  must  be  hidden  out  of  sight  as  soon  as 
possible  after,  what  conceivable  fate  could  be  worse  ? 
That  such  a  thing  is  possible,  proves  this  to  be  a  dreadful 
and  defective  world,  with  all  its  sources  of  pleasure.  Surely 
if  there  were  a  God  he  would  banish  such  horrible  evils." 

"  There  is  no  God — there  can't  be  any,  at  least  none 
6uch  as  the  Bible  reveals.  How  often  I  have  said  this  to 
myself  How  often  my  father  has  said  it  to  me ;  and  yet 
the  thought  of  Him  torments  me  often  even  when  well." 

"  Why  does  this  thought  come  so  persistently  now  ?  I 
settled  it  long  ago,  under  father's  proof,  that  I  did  not  be- 
lieve in  Him  or  the  superstitions  connected  with  His  name. 
Why  don't  the  question  stay  settled  ?  Other  superstitions 
do  not  trouble  me.  Why  should  that  Cross  continually 
haunt  me  ?  Why  should  the  ma7i  who  died  thereon  have 
the  power  to  be  continually  speaking  to  me  through  His 
Words  that  I.have  read.  I  believe  in  Socrates  as  much  as 
I  do  in  Him,  and  yet  I  recall  the  Greek  sage's  words  with 
an  effort,  and  cannot  escape  from  the  Nazarene's.  All  is 
mysterj'  and  chaos  and  danger.  We  human  creatures  are 
like  frothy  bubbles  that  glisten  and  dance  for  a  moment 
on  a  swift  black  tide  that  seems  flowing  forever,  and  yet 
nowhere." 


2o8  BARRIERS   BURNED    AWA"V. 

Then  her  thoughts  recurred  to  Dennis. 

"  That  young  Fleet  seemed  to  believe  implicitly  in  what 
he  said  yesterday,  and  he  lives  up  to  what  he  believes.  I 
would  give  the  world  for  his  delusion,  were  it  only  for  it^ 
comforting  and  sustaining  power  for  this  life.  If  he  were 
very  sick,  he  would  be  imagining  himself  on  the  threshold 
of  some  sort  of  heaven  or  paradise,  and  would  be  calm 
and  perhaps  even  happy,  where  I  am  so  supremely  wretch- 
ed. I  find  that  I  have  nothing — absolutely  nothing  to  sus- 
tain me — not  even  the  memory  of  good  deeds.  I  have 
not  even  lived  the  unselfish  life  that  Socrates  recommends, 
much  less  the  holy  life  of  the  Bible." 

''  I  have  pleased  myself.  Well,  believing  as  I  have  been 
taught,  that  seemed  the  most  sensible  course.  Why 
doesn't  it  seem  so  now  ?  " 

Thus  tossed  on  a  sea  of  uncertainty  and  fear,  Chris- 
tine, in  darkness  and  weakness,  grappled  with  those  mighty 
questions  which  only  He  can  put  to  rest  Who  said — 

"  Let  not  your  heart  be  troubled ;  ye  believe  in  God ; 
believe  also  in  Me." 


Dennis  walked  resolutely  home.  He  felt  himself  ada- 
mant in  his  stern  resolution.  He  at  least  had  the  death- 
like peace  that  follows  decision  ;  the  agony  of  conflict  was 
over  for  a  time;  and,  as  he  thought,  forever. 

From  mere  exhaustion  he  slept  heavily,  and  on  the  fol- 
lowing day  with  white  face  and  compressed  lips  entered 
on  his  work.  And  work  it  truly  now  became;  for  the  old 
glamour  was  all  gone,  and  life  looked  as  practical  and 
hard  as  the  stones  of  the  street.  Fven  the  pictures  on  the 
walls  seemed  to  him  but  things  for  sale,  representing 
money  values,  and  money  appeared  the  beginning,  middle, 
and  ending  of  the  world's  creed.  Like  the  unsubstantial 
mirage  had  vanished  the  beautiful,  happy  life  of  the  past 


DARKNESS. 


209 


few  weeks.  Around  him  were  the  rocks  and  sands  of  the 
desert,  through  which  he  must  toil  with  weary  bleeding 
feet  till  he  reached  the  land  watered  by  the  river  of  life. 
Reason  and  duty,  as  he  believed,  forbade  the  existence  of 
this  foolish  passion,  and  he  must,  and  would  destroy  it, 
but  in  his  anguish  he  felt  as  if  he  had  resolved  to  torture 
himself  to  death. 

"And  she  will  never  know  what  I  suffer — never  know 
the  wealth  of  heart  I  have  lavished  upon  her.  I  am  glad 
she  will  not,  for  the  knowledge  of  my  love  would  make  no 
more  impression  on  her  cold,  proud  nature  than  a  drop  of 
warm  Summer  rain  falling  on  the  brow  of  yonder  marble 
statue  of  Diana.  She  would  only  be  amazed  at  my  pre- 
sumption. She  feels  that  she  shines  down  on  me  like  the 
sun,  and  that  I  am  a  poor  little  satellite  that  she  could 
blot  out  altogether  by  causing  her  father  to  turn  me  out 
into  the  street  again,  which  undoubtedly  would  be  done 
should  I  reveal  my  feelings." 

And  he  was  right. 

"  Come  !  "  said  he  to  himself,  breaking  from  his  pain- 
ful revery,  "  no  weakness !  You  have  your  way  to  make 
in  the  world,  and  your  work  to  do ;  God  will  help  you,  and 
no  creature  shall  hinder  you,"  and  he  plunged  resolutely 
into  his  duties. 

Mr.  Ludolph  was  late  in  reaching  the  store  that  morn- 
ing, and  Dennis  found  himself  secretly  hoping,  in  spite  of 
himself,  that  Christine  would  accompany  him.  His  will 
and  heart  were  now  in  distinct  opposition,  and  the  latter 
would  not  obey  orders. 

When  Mr.  Ludolph  appeared,  it  was  with  a  frowning, 
clouded  brow.  Without  a  word  he  passed  into  his  private 
office,  but  seemed  so  restless  and  troubled  in  his  manner 
that  Dennis  felt  sometliing  was  wrong.  Why  should  he 
take  such  an  interest  in  this  man  ?  ^V'hy  should  ne  care  ? 
The  other  clerks  did  not — not  one  save  himself  had  noticed 


2IO  BARRIERS   BURNED  AWAY. 

an)'thing  different.     Poor  Dennis  was  to  learn  that  he  had 
a  disease  of  many  and  varied  symptoms. 

After  something  over  an  hour  had  passed,  Mr.  Ludolph 
started  from  his  desk,  took  his  hat  and  cane  as  with  the 
purpose  of  going  out — a  very  unusual  thing  at  that  time. 
But  as  he  was  passing  down  the  store,  he  met  Dr.  Arten 
opposite  Dennis's  counter. 

"  Well,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph  impatiently. 

"  I  will  call  again  this  evening,"  said  the  Doctor,  pru- 
dently non-committal.  "  Your  daughter  has  caught  a  very 
severe  cold.  I  hope  it  is  nothing  more  than  a  cold,  but 
so  many  troublesome  diseases  commence  with  these  ob- 
scure symptoms,  that  we  have  to  wait  till  further  develop- 
ments reveal  the  true  nature  of  the  case." 

"  You  doctors  make  no  headway  in  banishing  disease 
from  the  world,"  snarled  Mr.  Ludolph.  "  There  is  small- 
pox T  round  is  there  not  ?  ' 

"Yes,  I  am  sorry  to  say  there  is  a  great  deal  of  it,  but 
if  you  remember  taj:  history  of  that  one  disease,  I  think 
you  will  admit  your  remark  to  be  unfair." 

"  I  beg  your  pardon,  Doctor,  but  I  am  anxious,  and  all 
out  of  sorts,  as  I  ever  am  in  sickness "  (when  affecting 
himself, — he  might  justly  have  added).  "It  seems  such 
a  senseless,  useless  evil  in  the  world.  The  idea  of  you 
Christians  believing  a  benevolent  Being  rules  the  world, 
and  that  he  permits  small-pox.  Can  it  be  possible  that 
my  daughter  has  contracted  this  loathsome  horror  ^  " 

"  Well,  it  is  possible.  !mt  I  hope  not  at  all  probable. 
We  doctors  are  compelled  to  look  at  the  practical  rather 
than  the  theological  side  of  the  question.  It  i<?  possible 
for  (T.'iv  one  lo  have  this  disease.  Has  your  daughter  been 
vaccinated  .'  " 

"  No  1 ""  growled  Mr.  Ludolph.  "  I  don't  believe  in  vac- 
c'.nation.     It  is  as  apt  to  vitiate  th^  system  as  protect  it." 

"  1  am  sorry  for  that,'"  said  the  Doctor  looking  grave. 


DARKNESS.  211 

Keen  Mr.  Ludolph  saw  and  lead  his  physician's  ex- 
piession  accurately.     Seizing  his  hand  he  said  eagerly — 

"  Pardon  me,  Doctor,  you  can  understand  a  father's 
feeV.ngs.  Watch  this  case  night  and  day.  Spare  no  pains, 
and  be  assured  I  will  regret  no  expense,"  and  he  hastened 
away  to  his  daughter's  bedside. 

No  prisoner  at  the  bar  ever  listened  with  more  interest 
than  Dennis.  If  it  had  been  his  own  case  they  were  dis- 
cussing it  would  not  have  touched  half  so  nearly. 

But  a  moment  before,  Christine  in  her  pride,  wealth 
and  beauty,  seemed  destined  to  go  through  life  as  in  a,  tri- 
umphant march.  Now  he  saw  her  to  be  a  weak  human 
creature,  threatened  as  sorely  as  the  poorest  and  humblest. 
Her  glorious  beauty,  even  her  life,  might  pass  away  in  Le 
Grand  Hotel  as  surely  as  in  a  tenerr»ent  house.  The  very 
thought  thrilled  him  with  fear.  Then  a  great  pity  rushed 
into  his  soul  like  a  tide,  sweeping  everything  before  it. 
His  stern  resolution  to  stifle  and  trample  upon  his  love, 
melted  like  a  snow  wreath,  and  every  interest  of  life  cen- 
tred in  the  darkened  room  where  Christine  tossed  and 
moaned  in  the  deeper  darkness  of  uncertainty  and  doubt. 
The  longing  to  go  to  her  to  comfort  and  help,  was  so  in- 
tense that  it  required  the  utmost  effort  of  reason  and  will 
to  prevent  such  rash  action.  He  trembled  at  himself — -at 
the  strength  of  his  feelings,  and  saw  that  though  he  might 
control  outward  action,  his  heart  had  gone  from  him  be- 
yond remedy,  and  that  his  love,  so  long  unrecognized,  was 
now  like  the  principal  source  of  the  Jordan,  that  springs 
from  the  earth  a  full  grown  river,  and  that  he  could  not 
help  it. 

Mr.  Ludolph  found  little  comfort  at  his  daughter's  bed- 
side. Sending  her  maid  away,  who  was  glad  to  go,  Chris- 
tine told  what  she  had  overheard.  Small-pox  seemed  in 
the  mind  of  every  one,  but  this  was  not  strange  since  it 
ivas  so  prevalent  in  the  city. 


212  B\RRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

"  O  father,  what  shall  I  do — what  shall  I  do,  if  this 
should  be  the  case  ?  Janette  will  leave  me,  and  there  will 
be  no  one  to  take  care  of  me.  I  know  I  will  die,  and  I 
might  as  well,  as  to  be  made  hideous  by  this  horrible  dis- 
ease. No,  I  would  rather  live,  on  any  terms,  for  to  die  is 
to  be  nothing.  O  father,  are  you  sure  the  Bible  is  all 
false  ?  There  is  so  much  in  it  to  comfort  the  sick.  If  I 
could  only  believe  in  such  a  life  hereafter  as  Susie  Win- 
throp  does,  I  would  as  soon  die  as  not." 

"  No,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph  firmly,  "  your  only  chance  is 
to  get  well.  There  is  no  use  of  deceiving  ourselves.  I 
have  secured  the  services  of  the  most  skilful  of  physicians, 
and  will  see  that  you  have  every  attention.  So  try  to  be 
as  calm  as  possible,  and  cooperate  with  every  effort  to 
baffle  and  banish  disease.  After  all  it  may  be  nothing 
more  than  a  severe  coldJ' 

So  then  in  very  truth  this  world  was  all.  In  bitterness 
and  dread  she  realized  how  slight  was  her  hold  upon  it. 
To  her  healthful  body  pain  was  a  rare  experience,  but  now 
her  head  and  every  bone  ached,  and  the  slightest  move- 
ment caused  increased  suffering.  But  her  mental  trouble 
was  by  far  the  greatest.  Often  she  murmured  to  herself— 
"  O  that  I  had  been  trained  to  the  grossest  superstitions, 
so  that  I  might  not  look  down  into  this  black  bottom- 
less gulf  that  unbelief  opens  at  my  feet,"  and  she  tossed 
and  moaned  most  piteously. 

Mr.  Ludolph  returned  to  the  store  in  an  exceedingly 
worried  and  anxious  state.  As  he  entered  he  caught  Den- 
nis's eager  questioning  gaze,  and  a  thought  struck  him  : 

"  Perhaps  this  young  fellow,  through  his  mission  school, 
may  know  of  some  good  trustworthy  woman  who  would  act 
:i-  nurse,"  and  coining  to  Dennis  he  explained  what  is 
alicafly  known,  and  then  asked  if  he  knew  of  any  one,  or 
co'jkl  find  a  suitable  person. 

Dennis  listened  eagerly,  thought  a  moment,  and  then 
saiu  wilh  a  liushed  face  and  in  a  low  tone : 


DARKNESS.  2,3 

"  I  think  my  mother  would  be  willing  to  come.  She 
has  had  the  small-pox  .and  wou'd  not  be  afraid." 

"  But  would  she  be  willing  ?" 

"  I  think  I  could  persuade  her,"  said  Dennis. 

Mr.  Ludolph  though   a  moment,  then  said: 

"  I  think  she  would  be  the  one  of  all  others,  for  she 
must  be  very  much  of  a  lady,  and  I  would  not  Uke  to  put 
my  daughter  in  charge  of  a  common  coarse  woman.  You 
may  rest  assured  that  I  would  reward  her  liberally." 

"  She  would  not  come  for  money,  sir." 

"What  then?" 

Dennis  flushed  now  more  deeply  than  before.  He 
had  been  speaking  for  his  mother  from  his  own  stand- 
point, and  now  he  hardly  knew  what  to  say,  for  he  was  not 
good  at  evasion.  But  he  told  the  truth,  if  not  all  the 
truth.  "  We  feel  \  ery  grateful  to  you  for  the  means  of 
support,  and  a  chance  in  iife.when  the  world  was  very 
dark.     You  have  since  promoted  me — " 

"  Nonsense  !"  said  Ludolph,  somewhat  touched  though, 
"  yo  I  have  earned  every  dollar  you  have  received,  and 
you;  coming  has  been  of  advantage  to  me  also.  But  if 
you"  mother  will  meet  this  need,  should  it  occur,  neither 
of  you  will  have  cause  to  regret  it,"  and  he  passed  on  to 
his  office,  but  soon  after  left  again  and-  did  not  return  that 
day. 

To  Dennis  the  hours  dragged  on  like  years,  full  of 
suspense  and  mental  tumult.  At  times  he  would  bow  his 
head  behind  his  counter,  and  pray  in  tearful  fervor  for  the 
object  of  his  constant  thought.  The  day  was  rainy  and  the 
store  empty  of  customers,  for  which  he  was  most  thank- 
ful, as  he  would  have  made  the  poorest  of  salesmen.  At 
last  the  hour  for  closing  arrived,  and  he  was  left  to  him- 
self. In  the  solitude  of  his  own  room  he  once  more 
looked  the  situation  fairly  in  the  face.  With  his  head 
bowed  in  his  hands  he  thought,  "Last  night  I  thought  to 


21^  BARRIERS   BURNED   AWAY. 

tear  this  love  from  my  heart,  but  to-night  I  find  that  this 
would  be  to  tear  out  my  heart  itself.  I  cannot  do  it.  It 
is  my  strongest  conviction  that  I  can  no  more  stop  loving 
her  than  I  can  stop  living.  Unconsciously  this  love  has 
grown  until  now  it  is  my  master,  and  it  is  folly  to  make 
any  more  resolves  only  to  be  as  weak  as  water  when  I 
least  expect  it.     What  shall  I  do  ?" 

Motionless,  unconscious  of  the  lapse  of  time,  he  re- 
mained hour  after  hour  absorbed  in  painful  thought.  Cir- 
cumstances, reason,  the  Bible,  all  seemed  to  frown  upon  his 
love,  but  though  it  seemed  hopeless,  his  whole  nature  re- 
volted against  the  idea  of  its  being  wrong. 

"  It  cannot  be  wrong  to  love,  purely  and  unselfishly," 
he  muttered;  "such  love  as  mine  seems  to  carry  its  own 
conviction  of  right  with  it — an  inner  consciousness  that 
seems  so  strong  and  certain,  as  to  be  beyond  argument, 
beyond  everything ;  and  yet  if  God's  Word  is  against  it,  I 
must  be  wrong,  and  my  heart  is  misleading  me." 

Again  in  unbroken  silence  an  hour  passed  away. 
Then  the  thought  struck  him — 

"  It  is  not  contrary  to  God's  action  !  He  so  loved  the 
world — unbelievers  and  all — as  to  give  His  best  and  dear- 
est!    Can  it  be  wrong  to  be  God-like  ?" 

"It  is  not  wise,  it  is  not  safe,"  prudence  whispered, 
"  to  give  a  worldly,  unbelieving  spirit  the  power  to  influ- 
ence you  that  she  will  have  who  is  first  in  your  heart. 
AVhat  true  congeniality  can  there  be .''  What  fellowship 
hath  righteousness  with  unrighteousness,  or  what  part  hath 
he  that  believeth  with  an  infidel?  As  the  most  intimate 
friend  and  companion  in  life,  you  shoulc"  seek  one  who 
truly  can  be  one  with  you  in  all  things,  and  most  assuredly 
s<;  in  iliis  \-ital  respect." 

"  All."  thou;2;ht  Dennis,  "  that  would  have  been  very 
good  advice  to  j;ive  awhile  ago.  If  from  the  first  I  could 
have  understood  my  feelings  and   danger,  I  might  have 


DARKNESS.         "  215 

Steeled  my  heart  against  and  avoided  the  influences  that 
have  brought  me  to  this.  But  now  the  mischief  is  done. 
Th(j  words  that  now,  in  spite  of  myself,  continually  run  in 
my  mind,  are  "  What  God  hath  joined  together  let  not  man 
put  asunder."  It  seems  as  if  some  resistless  power  had 
joined  my  soul  to  hers,  and  I  find  no  strength  within  my- 
self to  break  the  bond.  I  am  not  usually  irresolute.  I 
think  I  have  principle,  and  yet  I  feel  I  would  not 
dare  make  the  most  solemn  vow  against  this  love.  I 
should  be  all  the  more  weak  because  conscience  does  not 
condemn  me.  It  seems  to  have  a  hght  that  reason  and 
knowledge  know  not  of.  And  yet  I  wish  I  could  be  more 
sure.  I  wish  I  could  say  to  myself,  I  may  be  loving  hope- 
lessly, but  not  sinfully.  I  would  take  the  risk.  Indeed  I 
cannot  help  taking  it.  O  that  I  could  find  light,  clear  and 
unmistakable." 

He  rose,  turned  up  his  lamp,  and  turned  to  the  Pau- 
line precepts.     These  words  struck  his  eye — 

"  Art  thou  bound  unto  a  wife  ?  Seek  not  to  be  loosed." 
Then  above,  the  words  "  How  knowest  thou,  O  man, 
whether  thou  shalt  save  thy  wife,  even  though  she  be  an 
unbeliever  ?" 

"  Am  I  not  bound — bound,  by  that  which  is  God's  link 
in  the  chain  ?  It  does  not  seem  as  if  the  legal  contract 
could  change  or  strengthen  my  feelings  materially,  and 
while  honoring  the  inviolable  rite  of  marriage,  which  is 
GocFs  law  and  society's  safety,  I  know  that  nothing  can 
more  surely  bind  me  to  her,  so  that  the  spirit,  the  \ital 
part  of  the  passage,  applies  to  me.  Then  if  through  this 
love  I  could  save  her  ;  if  by  prayer  and  effort  1  could  bring 
her  feet  into  the  paths  of  life,  I  should  feel  repaid  for  all 
that  I  could  possibly  suffer.  She  may  slight  my  human 
love  with  its  human  consummation,  but  God  will  not  let  a 
life  of  prayer  and  true  love  be  wasted,  and  she  may  learn 
here,  or  know  hsreafter,  that  though  the  world  laid  many 
rich  gifts  at  her  fept,  I  brought  the  Best  of  all." 


jl6  BARRIERS   BURNED  AWAY. 

He  looked  out,  and  saw  that  the  early  Spring  dawn 
was  tinging  the  horizon. 

"  A  good  omen,"  he  said  aloud.  "  Perhaps  the  night 
oi  this  trouble  is  past,  and  the  dawn  is  coming.  I  am 
convinced  that  it  is  not  wrong ;  and  I  am  resolved  to 
make  the  almost  desperate  attempt.  A  mysterious  hope, 
coming  from  I  know  not  where  or  what,  seems  to  beckon 
and  encourage  me  forward." 

Dennis  was  young. 


CHAPTER  XXVIII. 

MISS    LUDOLPH   COMMITS   A   THEFT. 

Mr.  Ludolph  on  his  return  found  Christine  suffering 
from  a  nervous  horror  of  the  small-pox.  From  her  indis- 
creet and  callous  maid,  intent  on  her  own  safety,  and  pre- 
paring to  extenuate  her  own  flight  should  her  fears  prove 
tnie,  Christine  learned  that  the  city  was  full  of  this  loath- 
some disease,  and  her  feelings  were  harrowed  by  exagger- 
ated instances  of  its  virulent  and  contagious  character. 

"  But  you  will  surely  stay  with  me,"  pleaded  Christine. 

"  Mademoiselle  could  not  expect  dat." 

"  Heartless !  "  muttered  Christine.  Then  she  said, 
"  Won't  you  go  for  Susie  Winthrop?  O  how  I  would  like 
to  see  her  now." 

"  She  vould  not  come,  no  von  vould  come  who  knew." 

Christine  wrung  her  hands  and  cried,  "01  shall  die 
alone  and  deserted  of  all." 

"  Xo  you  shall  not,"  said  her  father,  entering  at  that 
moment ;  "  so  do  not  give  way,  my  dear.  Leave  the  room, 
stupid  !  "  (to  the  maid",  who  again  gladly  escaped,  resolving 
not  to  enter  till  the  case  was  decided).  "  I  have  secured 
the  best  of  physicians,  and  the  best  of  nurses,  and  by  to- 
night or  to-morrow  morning  we  will  know  about  what  to 
expect.  I  cannot  help  hoping  still  that  it  is  only  a  severe 
cjld  " 

And  he  told  her  of  Dennis'  offer  of  his  mother's  ser- 
vices. 


2r8  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  I  am  sure  I  would  like  her,  for  somehow  I  picture  to 
myself  a  kind  motherly  person.  What  useful  creatures 
those  Fleets  are.  They  are  on  hand  in  emergencies  when 
one  so  needs  help.  It  seemed  very  nice  to  have  young 
Fhet  my  humble  servant ;  but  really,  father,  he  deserves 
promotion." 

*'  He  shall  have  it,  and  I  doubt  not  will  be  just  as 
ready  to  do  your  bidding  as  ever.  It  is  only  common- 
place people  whose  heads  are  turned  by  a  little  pros- 
perity. Fleet  knew  he  was  a  gentleman  before  he  came  to 
the  store." 

"  Father,  if  I  should  have  the  small-pox  and  live,  would 
my  beaut — would  I  become  a  fright  ?  " 

"  Not  necessarily.  Let  us  hope  for  the  best.  Make 
the  most  of  the  world,  and  aever  endure  evils  till  they 
come,  are  my  maxims.  Half  of  suffering  is  anticipation  of 
possible  or  probable  evil." 

"  Father,"  said  Christine  abruptly,  **  I  believe  you  are 
right,  you  must  be  right,  and  have  given  me  the  best  com- 
fort and  hope  that  truthfully  can  be  given.  But  this  is  a 
strange  cruel  world.  We  seem  the  sport  of  circumstances, 
the  victims  of  hard,  remorseless  laws.  One  bad  person 
can  frightfully  injure  another  person"  (a  spasm  distorted 
her  father's  face).  " What  accidents  may  occur!  Worst 
of  all  are  those  horrible,  subtle,  contagious  diseases  which 
none  can  see  or  guard  against !  Then  to  suffer,  die,  cor- 
rupt,— faugh  !  To  what  a  disgusting  end,  to  what  a  lame 
and  impotent  conclusion  does  the  noble  creature,  man, 
come  !  My  whole  nature  revolts  at  it.  For  instance,  here 
nm  I  a  voung  girl,  capable  of  the  highest  enjoyment,  with 
t;\erythiiig  to  live  for,  and  lured  forward  by  the  highest 
hopes  .iiiil  expectations  ;  and  yet  in  spite  of  all  the  safe- 
guards you  can  place  nround  me,  my  path  is  in  the  midst 
of  dangers,  and  now  perhaps  I  am  to  be  rendered  hideous, 


MISS  LUDOLPH  COMMITS  A  THEFT.  219 

if  not  killed  outright,  by  a  disease  the  very  thought  of  which 
fills  me  with  loathing.  What  I  fear  has  happened,  and 
may  happen  again.  And  what  compensation  is  there  for  it 
all  ? — what  can  enable  one  to  bear  it  aJl  ?  O  that  I  could 
believe  in  a  God  and  a  future  happier  life." 

"  And  what  kind  of  a  God  would  He  be  who,  h?.7ing 
the  power  to  prevent,  permits,  or  orders,  as  the  Bible 
teaches,  all  these  evils  ?  I  am  a  man  of  the  world,  and 
pretend  to  nothing  saint-like  or  chivalric,  but  do  you  think 
I  am  capable  of  going  to  Mr.  Winthrop  and  striking  down 
his  daughter  Susie  with  a  loathsome  disease  ?  And  yet  if 
a  minister  or  priest  should  come  here,  he  would  begin  to 
talk  about  the  mysterious  providence,  and  submission  to 
God's  will.  If  I  am  to  have  a  God,  I  want  one  at  least 
better  than"  myself." 

"  You  must  be  right,"  said  Christine,  with  a  weary 
moan.  "  I'here  is  no  God,  and  if  there  were,  in  view  of 
■what  you  say,  I  could  only  hate  and  fear  Him.  How  cha- 
otic the  world  is !  But  it  is  hard."  After  a  moment  she 
added  shudderingly,  "  //  is  horrible.  I  did  not  tliink  of 
tliese  things  when  well." 

"  Get  well  and  forget  them  again,  my  dear.  It  is  the 
best  you  can  do." 

"If  I  get  well,"  said  Christine  almost  fiercely,  "  I  shall 
get  the  most  I  can  out  of  life,  cost  what  it  may,"  and  she 
turned  her  face  to  the  wall. 

A  logical  result  of  his  teaching,  but  for  some  reason  it 
awakened  in  Mr.  Ludolph  a  vague  foreboding. 

The  hours  dragged  on,  and  late  in  the  afternoon  the 
hard  driven  physician  appeared,  examined  his  patient  and 
seemed  relieved. 

"  If  there  is  no  change  for  the  worse,"  he  said  cheerily, 
*if  no  new  s}Tnptoms  develop  by  to-morrow,  I  can  pro- 
noimce  this  merely  a  severe  cold,  caused  by  state  of  sys- 


,20  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

tern  and  too  sudden  check  of  perspiration."  And  the  doc- 
tor gave  an  opiate  and  bowed  himself  out 

Long  and  heavily  Christine  slept.  The  night  that  Den- 
nis filled  with  agonizing  prayer  and  thought,  was  to  her  a 
blank.  While  he  in  his  strong  Christian  love  brought 
hea\  en  nearer  to  her,  while  he  resolved  on  that  which  would 
give  her  a  chance  for  life — happy  life,  here  and  hereafter, 
she  was  utterly  unconscious.  No  vision  or  presentiment 
of  good,  like  a  struggling  ray  of  light,  found  access  to  her 
darkened  spirit.  So  heavy  was  the  stupor  induced  by  the 
opiate,  that  her  sleep  seemed  like  the  blank  she  so  feared, 
when  her  pleasurable  ambitious  life  should  end  in  nothing- 
ness. 

So  I  suppose  God's  love  meditates  good,  and  resolves 
on  life  and  joy  for  us,  while  our  hearts  are  sleeping,  dead 
to  Him — dead  in  trespasses  and  sins — benumbed  and  par- 
alyzed so  that  only  His  love  can  awaken  them.  Like  a 
vague  yet  hope-inspiring  dream,  this  truth  often  enters  the 
minds  of  those  who  are  wrapped  in  the  spiritual  lethargy 
that  may  end  in  death.  God  wakes,  watches,  loves,  and 
purposes  good  for  them.  When  most  unconscious,  per- 
haps another  effort  for  our  salvation  has  been  resolved 
upon  in  the  councils  of  heaven. 

But  ambition  more  than  love,  earthly  hopes  rather  than 
heavenly,  kept  Mr.  Ludolph  an  anxious  watcher  at  Chris- 
tine's side  that  night.  A  smile  of  satisfaction  illumined 
his  somewhat  haggard  face  as  he  saw  the  fever  pass  away 
and  the  dew  of  natural  moisture  come  out  on  Christine's 
brow,  but  there  was  no  thankful  glance  upward.  Immu- 
nity from  loathsome  disease  was  due  only  to  chance  and 
tl.e  jDhysician's  skill,  by  his  creed. 

The  s'ln  was  shining  brightly  when  Christme  awoke, 
ai:d  by  a  1*1  int  call  startled  her  father  from  a  doze  in  the 
great  arm-chair. 


MISS  LUDOLPH  COMMITS  A  THEFT.  221 

"  How  do  you  feel,  my  dear  ? "  he  asked. 

She  languidly  rubbed  her  heavy  eyes,  and  said  "she 
thought  she  was  better — she  felt  no  pain."  The  opiate 
had  not  yet  lost  its  effect.  But  soon  she  greatly  revived, 
and  when  the  Doctor  came  he  found  her  decidedly  better, 
and  concluded  that  she  was  merely  suffering  frona  a  severe 
cold,  and  would  soon  regain  her  usual  health. 

Father  and  daughter  were  greatly  relieved,  and  their 
spirits  rose. 

"I  really  feel  as  if  I  ought  to  thank  somebody,"  said 
Christine.  "  I  am  not  going  to  thank  the  Doctor,  for  I 
know  what  a  bill  i§  coming,  so  I  will  thank  you.  It  was 
very  kind  of  you  to  sit  up  the  long  night  with  me." 

Even  Mr.  Ludolph  had  to  remember  that  he  had 
thought  as  much  of  himself  as  of  her,  in  his  anxiety. 

"  Another  lease  of  life,"  said  Christine,  dreamily  look- 
ing into  the  future,  "  and  as  I  said  last  night,  I  mean  to 
make  the  most  of  it." 

"  I  can  best  guide  3'ou  in  doing  that,"  said  her  father, 
looking  into  his  daughter's  face  with  keen  scrutiny. 

"  I  believe  you,  and  intend  to  give  you  the  chance. 
When  can  we  leave  this  detested  land,  this  city  of  shops 
and  speculators  ?  To  think  that  I,  Christine  Ludolph,  am 
sick,  idle  and  perhaps  have  endangered  all  by  reason  of 
foolish  exposure  in  a  Brewer's  tawdrj-,  money-splashed 
house  !  Come,  father,  when  is  the  next  scene  in  the  brief 
drama  to  open  ?  I  am  impatient  to  go  home  to  our  beloved 
Germany  and  enter  on  real  life." 

"  Well,  my  dear,  if  all  goes  well,  we  can  enter  on  our 
true  career  a  year  from  next  Fall — a  short  year  and  a  halt 
Do  not  blame  the  delay,  for  it  will  enable  us  to  live  in  Ger- 
many in  almost  royal  style.  I  never  was  making  money 
so  rapidly  as  now.  I  have  invested  in  that  which  cannot 
depreciate,   and  thus  far  has  advanced  beyond  belief — 


222  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

buildings  in  the  business  part  of  tie  city.  Rents  are  pay- 
ing me  from  twenty  to  a  hundred  per  cent.  At  the  same 
lime  I  could  sell  out  in  a  month.  So  you  see  you  hjve 
only  to  cooperate — to  preserve  health  and  strength — to 
fcnjoy  all  that  money  can  insure ;  and  money  can  buy 
almost  everything." 

Christine's  eyes  sparkled  as  the  future  opened  before 
hor,  and  she  said  with  emphasis,  "  If  /  could  preserve 
health  and  strength,  I  would  live  a  thousand  years." 

"  You  can  do  much  toward  it.  Every  chance  is  in  favor 
of  prudence  and  wise  action;"  and  much  lelieved,  her 
father  went  to  the  store. 

Business  had  accumulated,  and  in  complete  absorp>- 
tion  he  gave  himself  to  it.  With  an  anxiety  beyond 
expression,  Dennis,  flushed  and  trembling,  ventured  to 
approach. 

Merely  glancing  to  see  who  it  was,  Mr.  Ludolph,  with 
his  head  bent  over  his  writing,  said: 

"  Miss  Ludolph  is  better — no  fear  of  small-pox,  I 
thi'ik — you  need  not  write  to  your  mother — greatly 
obliged."' 

It  was  well  for  Dennis  that  his  employer  did  not 
look  up.  The  open  face  of  Mr.  Ludolph's  clerk  expressed 
more  than  friendly  interest  in  his  daughter's  health. 
Pie  went  to  his  tasks  with  amour  tain  of  fear  lifted  from 
his  heart. 

But  the  thought  of  her  lying  alone  and  sick  at  the 
hjtel,  seemed  very  pathetic  to  him.  Love  filled  his  h(>ait 
with  moie  sympathy  for  Christine  upon  her  luxurious 
couch,  i'l  ripid  convalescence,  than  for  all  the  hopeless 
suffc-rir.g  of  Chicaj^o.  ^^'hat  could  he  do  for  her?  She 
Si-emed  so  far  o:t',  so  high  and  distant,  that  he  could  not 
reacli  her.  If  he  ventured  to  send  anything,  prudence 
whispered  that  she   would  regard   it  as  an  impertinence. 


MISS  LUDOLPH  COMMITS  A  THEFT. 


223 


But  love  can  climb  every  steep  place,  and  prudence  is  not 
its  Grand  Vizier. 

Going  by  a  fruit-store  in  the  afternoon  he  saw  some 
elegan/  strawberries,  the  first  in  from  the  South.  He 
bough'  a  basket,  decorated  it  with  German  ivy  obtained 
at  a  flower-stand,  and  spirited  it  up-stairs  to  his  room  as 
if  it  were  the  most  dangerous  of  contraband.  In  a  dis- 
guised hand  he  wrote  on  a  card — "For  Miss  Ludolph." 
Calling  Ernst,  who  had  little  to  do  at  that  hour  of  the  day, 
he  said — 

"  Ernst,  my  boy,  take  this  parcel  to  Le  Grand  Hotel, 
and  say  it  is  for  Miss  Christine  Ludolph.  Tell  them  to 
send  it  right  up,  but  on  no  account — remember,  on  no 
account,  tell  any  one  who  sent  it.  Carry  it  carefully  in  just 
this  manner." 

Ernst  was  soon  at  his  destination,  eager  to  do  any- 
thing for  his  friend. 

After  all,  the  day  had  proved  a  long  one  for  Christine, 
Unaccustomed  to  the  restraints  of  sickness,  the  enforced 
inaction  was  very  wearisome.  Mind  and  body  both 
seemed  weak.  The  sources  of  chief  enjoyment  when  well, 
seemed  powerless  to  contribute  much  now.  In  silken 
robe  she  reclined  in  arm-chair,  or  languidly  sauntered  about 
the  room.  She  took  up  a  book  only  to  throw  it  down 
again.  Her  pencil  fared  no  better.  Ennui  gave  to  her 
fair  young  face  the  expression  of  one  who  had  tried  the 
world  for  a  century  and  found  it  wanting. 

She  was  leaning  her  elbow  on  the  window-sill,  gazing 
vacantly  into  the  street,  when  Ernst  appeared. 

"  Janette,"  she  said  suddenly,  "do  you  see  that  boy  ? 
He  is  employed  at  the  store  ;  go  bring  him  up  here,  I  want 
hnn,  '  and  with  more  animation  than  she  had  shown  that 
day,  she  got  out  materials  for  a  sketch. 

"  1  must  get  that  boy's  face,"  she  said,  "  before  good 
living  destroys  all  his  artistic  merit." 


2  24  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY 

Ernst  was  unwilling  to  come,  but  the  maid  almost  drag- 
ged liim  up. 

"What  have  you  got  there?"  asked  Miss  Ludolph  with 
a  reassuring  smile. 

"  Something  for  Miss  Ludolph,"  stammered  the  boy, 
looking  very  embarrassed. 

Christine  carefully  opened  the  parcel  and  then  exclaimed 
with  delight : 

"  Strawberries,  as  I  live  I  the  very  ambrosia  of  the  gods. 
Pa  sent  them,  did  he  not?" 

"  No,"  said  the  boy  hanging  his  head. 

"  \A  hodid,  then  ? "  said  Christine  looking  at  him  keenly. 

He  shuffled  uneasily  but  made  no  answer. 

"  Come,  I  insist  on  knowing,"  she  cried,  her  wilful 
spirit  and  curiosity  both  aroused; 

The  boy  was  pale  and  frightened,  and  she  was  men- 
tally  taking  notes  of  his  face. 

But  he  said  doggedly,  "  I  can't  tell." 

"  But  I  say  you  must.  Don't  you  know  that  I  am  Miss 
Ludolph  ? " 

"  I  don't  care  what  you  do  to  me,"  said  the  little  fellow, 
beginning  to  cry,  "I  won't  tell." 

"  Why  won't  you  tell,  my  boy  ? "  said  Christine  cun- 
ningly in  a  wheedling  tone  of  voice. 

Before  he  knew  it,  the  frightened,  bewildered  boy  fell 
into  the  trap,  and  he  sobbed : 

"Because  Mr.  Fleet  told  me  not  to,  and  I  wouldn't 
disobey  him  to  save  my  life." 

A  look  of  surprise,  and  then  a  broad  smile  at  the  -vhole 
thing,  stole  over  tlie  young  girl's  face, — at  the  gift,  the 
messeng(;r,  and  at  him  who  sent  it.  It  was  indeed  a  fiesh 
and  unexpected  little  episode,  breaking  the  monotony  of 
the  day — as  fresh  and  pleasing  to  her  as  one  of  the  lus- 
cious berries  so  grateful  to  her  parched  mouth. 


MISS  LUDOLPH  COMMITS  A  THEFT.  225 

•'  You  need  not  tell  me,"  she  said  soothingly,  "  if  Mr. 
Fleet  told  yo::  not  to." 

The  boy  saw  the  smile,  and  in  a  moment  realizec  "^hat 
he  bid  been  tricked  out  of  the  forbidden  knowledge. 

His  little  face  glowed  with  honest  indignation,  and 
looking  straight  at  Miss  Ludolph  w'tli  'lis  great  syes  flash- 
ing through  the  tears,  he  said : 

"  You  stole  that  from  me." 

Even"  she  colored  a  little  and  bit  her  lip  under  the 
merited  charge.  But  all  this  made  him  all  the  more  in- 
teresting as  an  art  study,  and  she  was  now  sketching 
away  rapidly. 

She  coolly  replied,  however:  "You  don't  know  the 
world  very  well,  yet,  my  little  man." 

The  boy  said  nothing,  but  stood  regarding  her  with  his 
unnaturally  large  eyes  filled  with  anger,  reproach,  and 
wonder. 

"  Oh,"  thought  Christine,  "  if  I  could  only  paint  that 
expression  ! " 

"  You  seem  a  great  friend  of  Mr.  Fleet,"  she  said, 
studying  and  sketching  him  as  if  he  had  been  an  inanimate 
object. 

The  boy  made  no  answer. 

"  Perhaps  you  do  not  know  that  I  am  a  friend — friend- 
ly," she  added,  correcting  herself,  "•  to  Mr.  Fleet  also." 

*'  Mr.  Fleet  never  likes  to  have  his  friends  do  wrong," 
said  the  boy  doubtingly. 

Again  she  colored  a  little,  for  Ernst's  pure  and  re- 
proachful face  made  her  feel  that  she  had  done  a  mean 
thing,  but  she  laughed  and  said : 

"  You  see  I  am  not  in  his  mission  class,  and  have  never 
hr-d  the  instruction  that  you  have.  But  after  all.  why  do 
you  think  Mi'.  Fleet  better  than  other  people  ? " 

"By  what  he  does." 


226  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  TK.it  is  a  fair  test ;  what  has  he  done  ? " 

"  He  saved  us  all  from  starving,  and  worse  than  starv- 
ing." 

Then  with  feminine  tact  she  drew  from  him  his  stor}', 
and  it  was  told  with  the  natural  pathos  of  childhood  and 
deep  feeling,  and  his  gratitude  caused  him  to  dwell  on  the 
part  Dennis  had  taken  with  a  simple  eloquence,  while  his 
rich  and  loved  German  accent  made  it  all  the  more  inter- 
esting to  Christine.  She  dropped  her  pencil,  and  when 
he  closed,  her  eyes,  that  were  seldom  moistened  by  the  dew 
of  sympathy,  were  wet. 

"  Good-bye,  my  child,"  she  said  in  a  voice  so  kind  and 
sweet  that  it  seemed  as  if  another  person  had  spoken. 
"  You  shall  come  again,  and  then  I  shall  finish  my  sketch. 
When  I  get  well  I  shall  go  to  see  your  father's  picture. 
Do  not  be  afraid ;  neither  you  nor  Mr.  Fleet  will  be  the 
worse  for  the  strawberries,  and  you  may  tell  him  that  they 
have  done  me  much  good." 

When  Dennis,  wondering  at  Ernst's  long  absence,  heard 
from  him  his  story,  his  mind  was  in  a  strange  tumult,  and 
yet  the  result  of  his  effort  seemed  favorable.  But  he 
learned  more  fully  than  ever  that  Christine  was  not  per- 
fect, and  that  her  faultless  beauty  and  taste  were  but  the 
fair  mask  of  a  deformed  spirit.  But  he  dwelt  in  hope  on 
the  feeling  she  had  shown  at  Ernst's  story. 

"She  seemed  to  have  two  hearts,"  said  the  boy,  "  a 
good,  kind  one  way  inside  the  cold,  hard  outside  one." 

"  That  is  about  the  truth,"  thought  Dennis.  "  Good- 
night, Ernst.  I  don't  blame  you,  my  boy,  For  you  did 
the  best  you  could." 

He  had  done  better  than  Dennis  knew. 


CHAPTER  XXIX. 

A  MISERABLE  TRIUMPH. 

After  Ernst's  departure  Chnstine  reclined  wearily  in 
her  chair,  quite  exhausted  by  even  the  slight  effort  she  had 
made,  but  her  thoughts  were  busy. 

"  What  a  unique  character  that  Dennis  Fleet  is  !  And 
yet,  in  view  of  what  he  believes  and  professes,  he  is  both 
natural  and  consistent.  He  seems  humble  only  in  station, 
and  that  is  not  his  fault. '  Everything  he  does  seems 
marked  by  unusual  good  taste  and  intelligence.  His  ear- 
lier position  and  treatment  in  the  store  must  have  been 
very  galling.  I  can  hardly  believe  that  the  gentleman  I 
sang  Mendelssohn's  music  with  the  other  evening  was  the 
same  that  I  laughed  at  as  he  blacked  old  Schwartz's  boots. 
And  yet  he  saw  me  laugh,  and  blacked  the  boots,  con- 
scious that  he  was  a  gentleman.  It  must  have  been  very 
hard.  And  yet  I  would  rather  do  such  work  myself  than 
live  on  charity,  and  so  undoubtedly  he  felt.  It  was  very 
fortunate  that  we  got  the  store  arranged  before  all  this 
occurred,  for  I  could  not  order  him  about  now,  as  I  did. 
The  fact  is  I  like  servants^  not  dignified  helpers ;  and 
knowing  what  I  do,  even  if  he  would  permit  it,  I  could  not 
speak  to  him  as  formerly.  But  he  did  show  wonderfij 
taste  and  skill  in  his  help.  See  now  that  little  ivory- 
twined  basket  of  luscious  fruit:  it  looks  just  like  him.  If 
he  were  only  rich  and  titled,  what  a  genuine  nobleman  he 
would  make.  He  is  among  the  few  men  who  do  not  weary 
or  disgust  me — so  many  are  coarse  and  commonplace      T 


2  28  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

cannot  understand  it,  but  I,  who  fear  and  care  For  no  one 
save  my  father,  almost  feared  him  when  under  Miss 
Brown's  insolence  he  looked  as  few  men  can.  What  a 
jumble  the  world  is !  He  sweeps  the'  store,  while  insig- 
n'ficant  atoms  of  men  are  conspicuous  in  their  littleness 
by  reason  of  high  position. 

"  It  was  very  kind  of  him  to  send  me  this  tasteful  sr''-^ 
after  the  miserable  experience  I  caused  him  the  other  day. 
I  suppose  he  does  it  on  the  principle  of  returning  good  for 
evil,  as  his  creed  teaches.  Moreover  he  seems  grateful  that 
father  gave  him  employment,  and  a  chance  to  earn  twice 
what  he  gets.     He  certainly  must  be  promoted  at  once. 

"  Perhaps,"  thought  she,  smiling  to  herself,  while  a  faint 
tinge  of  color  came  into  her  cheeks,  "perhaps,  like  'so 
many  others,  he  may  be  inclined  to  be  a  little  sentimental 
also,  though  he  will  never  be  as  silly  as  some  of  them. 

"  What  a  noble  part  he  acted  toward  those  Bruders  1 
The  heart  of  a  pagan  could  not  fail  to  be  touched  by  that 
poor  little  fellow's  story,  and  it  has  made  me  believe  that 
I  have  more  heart  than  I  supposed.  Sometimes,  especi- 
ally when  I  hear  or  read  of  some  such  noble  deed,  I  catch 
glimpses  of  a  life  infinitely  better  than  the  one  I  know,  like 
the  sun  shining  through  a  rift  in  the  clouds  ;  then  they 
shut  down  again,  and  father's  practical  wisdom  seems  the 
best  there  is. 

"  At  any  rate,"  she  said  aloud,  getting  up  and  walking 
the  floor  with  something  of  tl.e  old  restless  energy,  "I  in- 
tend to  live  while  I  live,  and  crowd  into  life's  brief  day  all 
that  I  can.  I  thank  Mr.  Fleet  for  a  few  sensations  in  what 
would  otherwise  have  been  a  monotonous,  dreary  after- 
noon." 

"  What  strawberries  !  "  said  Mr.  Ludolph,  coming  in. 
"Where  did  you  get  these  .^  They  are  the  first  I  have 
seen." 


A  MISERABLE  TRIUMPH.  229 

"  Your  nian-of-all-work  sent  them  to  me,"  said  Chris- 
tine, daintily  dipping  one  after  another  in  sugar. 

"  VVell,  that  is  a  good  joke."    . 

*  A  most  excellent  one,  which  I  am  enjoying,  xnd  .n 
which  you  may  share.     Help  yourself." 

"  And  what  has  led  him  to  this  extravagant  favor  ? " 

"  Consistency,  I  suppose.  As  a  good  Christian  he 
would  return  good  for  evil  ;  and  I  certainly  caused  him 
many  and  varied  tortures  the  other  day." 

"  No,  he  is  grateful ;  from  first  to  last  the  callow  youth 
has  been  overwhelmed  with  gratitude  that  I  have  permit- 
ted him  to  be  worth  to  me  double  what  I  paid  him." 

"  Well,  you  have  decided  to  promote  him,  have  you 
not?" 

"  Yes,  he  shall  have  charge  of  the  hanging  of  new  pic- 
tures, and  the  general  arrangement  of  the  store,  so  as  to 
keep  up  your  tasteful  and  artistic  arrangement.  Moreover, 
he  shall  meet  customers  at  the  door,  and  direct  them  just 
where  to  find  what  they.  want.  He  is  fine-looking,  polite, 
spe;  '<s  English  perfectly,  and  thus  takes  well.  I  can  grad- 
uall)  work  him  in  as  general  salesman,  without  creating 
troublesome  jealousies." 

"  What  will  old  Schwartz  say  ?  " 

"  Schwartz  is  good  at  finance  and  figures.  I  can  trust 
him,  and  he  must  relieve  me  more  in  this  respect.  He  of 
course  knows  that  this  is  the  more  important  work,  and 
will  feel  honored.  As  to  the  others,  if  they  do  not  like  it 
I  can  find  plenty  who  will.  Fleet's  good  fortune  will  take 
him  quite  by  surprise.  He  was  performing  his  old  humble 
dulies  as  briskly  and  contentedly  as  usual  to-day." 

"  I  am  surprised  at  that,  for  I  should  have  supposed 
that  he  would  have  been  on  his  dignity  somewhat,  indica- 
ting by  manner  at  least  that  the  time  for  a  change  had  come. 
He  can  indicate  a  great  deal  by  manner,  as  you  might  have 


230  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

learned  had  you  seen  him  under  Miss  Brown's  insults  and 
my  lack  of  courtesy.  Well  it  does  me  good  to  find  one 
American  whose  head  is  not  turned  by  a  little  success. 
You  are  right  though,  I  think,  father ;  that  young  fellow 
can  be  very  useful  to  you,  and  a  decided  help  in  hastenhig 
the  time  when  we  can  leave  this  shop  life,  and  enter  our 
true  sphere.  I  am  more  impatient  to  go  than  words  can 
ex})ress,  for  life  seems  so  brief  and  uncertain  that  we  must 
gi  asp  things  as  soon  as  possible  or  we  lose  them  forever. 
Heavens  !  what  a  scare  I  have  had  !  Everything  seemed 
slipping  from  my  feet  yesterday,  and  I  sinking  I  know  not 
where.  Surely  by  concentrating  every  energy  we  can  be 
ready  to  go  by  a  year  from  next  Fall." 

"  Yes,  that  is  my  plan  now."  ^ 

On  the  following  day  Dennis  was  again  promoted  and 
his  pay  increased.  A  man  more  of  the  Pat  Murphy  type 
was  found  to  perform  the  coarse  work  of  the  store.  As 
Mr.  Ludolph  had  said,  he  could  hardly  realize  his  good 
fortune.  He  felt  like  one  lifted  out  of  a  narrow  restricted 
valley  to  a  breezy  hill-side.  He  was  now  given  a  vant  ge- 
point  from  which  it  seemed  he  could  climb  rapidly,  ana  his 
heart  was  light  as  he  thought  of  what  he  would  be  able  to 
do  for  his  mother  and  sisters.  Hope  grew  sanguine  as  he 
saw  how  he  would  now  have  the  means  to  pursue  his 
beloved  art-studies  to  far  greater  advantage.  But  chief  of 
all,  his  promotion  brought  him  nearer  the  object  of  hisall- 
absorl)ing  passion.  What  he  feared  would  take  him  one 
or  two  years  to  accomplish,  he  had  gained  in  a  day.  Hope 
whispered  that  perhaps  it  was  througli  her  influence  in 
some  degree  that  he  had  obtained  this  advance.  Could 
she  have  seen  and  read  his  ardent  gLinces  ?  Lover's  hopes 
will  grow  like  Jonah's  gourd,  and  die  down  again  as 
quickly.  Words  could  not  express  his  longing  to  see  her 
again,  but  for  several  days  she  did  not  come  to  the  store. 


A  MISERABLE  TRIUMPH.  237 

She  merely  sent  him  word  to  complete  the  unfinisliecl  show- 
room in  accordance  with  the  plan  on  which  they  had  been 
working,  leaving  space  on  the  sides  of  the  room  opposite 
each  othei;,for  two  large  pictures.  Though  much  disap  ■ 
pointed,  Dennis  had  carefully  carried  out  her  bidding. 

Every  evening  the  moment  his  duties  permitted  he 
sought  his  instructor,  Mr.  Bruder,  and  with  an  eagerness 
his  friends  could  not  understand,  sought  to  educate  hand 
and  eye.  Dennis  judged  rightly  that  mere  business  suc- 
cess would  never  open  to  him  a  way  to  the  heart  of  such  a 
girl  as  Christine.  His  only  hope  of  winning  even  her 
attention,  was  to  excel  in  the  world  of  art,  where  she  hoped 
to  shine  as  a  queen.  Then  to  his  untiring  industry  and 
eager  attention  he  added  real  genius  for  his  tasks,  and  it 
was  astonishing  what  progress  he  made.  \\  hen  at  the 
close  of  his  daily  lesson  Dennis  had  taken  his  departure, 
Mr.  Bruder  would  shake  his  head,  and  cast  up  his  eyes  in 
wonder,  and  exclaim  : 

"  Dat  youth  vill  astonish  de  vorld  yet.  Never  in  all 
Germany  haf  I  seen  such  a  scholar." 

Often  till  after  midnight  he  would  paint  and  study  in 
the  solitude  of  his  own  little  room.  And  now  relieved  of 
duties  in  the  early  morning,  he  arranged  an  old  easel  in 
the  attic  of  the  store,  a  sort  of  general  lumber  room,  but 
which  had  a  good  light  for  his  purpose.  Here  he  secured 
two  good  hours  daily,  and  often  more  ;  and  his  hand  grew 
skilful,  and  his  eye  true,  under  his  earnest  efforts.  But  his 
intense  application  caused  his  body  to  grow  thin  and  his 
face  pale. 

Christine  had  rapidly  recovered  from  her  illness,  her 
vital  and  elastic  constitution  rebounding  back  into  health 
and  vigor  like  a  bow  rarely  bent.  She,  too,  was  working 
scarcely  less  eagerly  than  Dennis,  and  prepanng  for  a 
ti  iumph  w'hich  she  hoped  would  be  the  earnest  of  the  fame 


232  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

she  meant  to  achieve.  She  no  longer  came  to  the  store 
with  her  father  in  the  morning,  but  spent  the  best  and  early 
hcuto  of  the  day  in  painting,  riding  out  along  the  Jake  and 
in  the  park  in  the  afternoon.  Occasionally  she  came  to 
the  store  in  the  after  part  of  the  day,  glanced  sharply  round 
to  see  that  her  tasteful  arrangement  was  kept  up,  and  ever 
seemed  satisfied. 

Dennis  was  usually  busy  with  customers  at  that  time, 
and  though  conscious  of  her  presence  the  moment  she 
entered,  found  no  excuse  or  encouragement  to  approach. 
The  best  he  ever  received  from  her  was  a  slight  smile  and 
a  cold  bow  of  recognition,  and  in  her  haste  and  self-absorp- 
tion she  did  not  always  give  these.  She  evidently  had 
something  on  her  mind  by  which  it  was  completely  preoc- 
cupied. 

"  She  does  not  even  think  of  me,"  sighed  Dennis  ;  "  she 
evidently  imagines  that  there  is  an  immeasurable  distance 
between  us  yet." 

He  was  right ,  she  did  not  think  of  him  or  scarcely 
any  one  else,  so  absorbed  was  she  with  the  thought  of  a 
great  success  that  now  was  almost  sure.  She  had  sent  her 
thanks  for  the  berries  by  her  father,  which  so  frightened 
Dennis  that  he  had  ventured  on  no  more  such  favors. 
She  had  interceded  for  his  promotion,  surely  she  had  "paid 
her  debt,  and  was  at  quits.  So  she  would  have  been  if  he 
had  only  given  her  a  basket  of  strawberries,  but  having 
given  his  heart,  and  life-long  love,  he  could  scarcely  be 
expected  to  be  satisfied.  But  he  vowed  after  each  blank 
day  all  the  more  resolutely  that  he  would  win  lier  attention, 
secure  recognition  of  his  equality,  and  so  be  in  position  fof 
laying  siege  to  her  heart. 

But  a  deadly  blight  suddenly  came  o\er  all  his  hopes. 

One  bright  morning  the  last  of  May,  two  large  flat 
boxes  were  brought  to  the  store.     Dennis  was  busy  with 


A  MISERABLE  TRIUMPH.  233 

customers,  a/^d  Mr.  Schwartz  said  in  his  bkint  decided  way 
that  he  would  see  to  the  hanging  of  those  pictures.  They 
were  carried  to  the  show-room  in  the  rear  of  the  store,  and 
Dennis  at  once  concluded  that  they  were  something  ery 
fine,  designed  to  fill  the  spaces  he  had  left,  and  was  most 
anxious  to  see  them.  Before  he  was  disengaged  they 
were  lifted  from  their  casing  and  were  standing  side  by  side 
on  the  floor  opposite  the  entrance,  the  warm  rich  morn- 
ing sun  falling  upon  them  with  fine  effect.  Mr.  Schwartz 
seemed  unusually  excited  and  perplexed  for  him,  and  stared 
first  at  one  picture,  then  at  the  other,  in  a  manner  indica- 
ting that  not  tlieir  beauty,  -but  some  other  cause  disturbed 
him. 

Dennis  had  scarcely  had  time  to  exclaim  at  the  exquis- 
ite loveliness  and  finish  of  the  two  paintings,  before  Mr. 
Ludolph  entered  accompanied  by  Mr.  Consoor,  a  well- 
known  artist,  and  Mr.  Frame,  proprietor  of  another  large 
picture-store,  and  several  gentlemen  of  taste  but  of  lesser 
note,  whom  Dennis  had  learned  to  know  by  sight  as  habi- 
tues of  the  "Temple  of  Art."  He  also  saw  that  Christine 
was  advancing  up  the  store  with  a  lady  and  gentleman. 
Feeling  that  his  presence  might  be  regarded  as  obtrusive, 
he  passed  out,  and  was  about  to  go  away,  when  he  heard 
his  name  called. 

Looking  up  he  saw  Miss  Winthrop  holding  out  her 
hand,  and  in  a  moment  more  she  presented  him  to  her 
father,  who  greeted  him  cordially.  Christine  also  gave 
him  a  brief  smile,  and  said : 

"You  need  not  go  away.     Come  and  see  the  pictures." 

Quick-eyed  Dennis  saw  that  she  was  filled  with  sup- 
pressed excitement.  Her  cheeks,  usually  but  slightly 
tinged  with  pink,  now  by  turns  glowed  and  were  pale. 
Miss  Winthrop  seemed  to  share  her  ner\'ousness,  though 
what  could   so  excite   them   he   could   not  divine.     The 


234  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

paintings,  beautiful  as  they  were,  could  scarcely  be  the  ad- 
equate cause ;  and  yet  every  eye  was  fastened  on  them. 

One  seemed  the  exact  counterpart  of  the  other  in  frame 
and  finish  as  well  as  subject.  A  little  in  the  background, 
upon  a  crag  o\  erhanging  the  Rhine,  was  a  castle  massive, 
frowning,  and  built  more  for  security  and  defence  than 
comfort.  The  surrounding  landscape  was  bold,  wild,  and 
even  gloomy.  But  in  contrast  with  these  rugged  and 
sterner  features,  was  a  scene  of  exquisite  softness  and  ten- 
derness. Beneath  the  shadow  of  some  great  trees  not  far 
from  the  castle  gate,  a  young  Crusader  was  taking  leave 
of  his  fair-haired  bride.  Her  pale,  tearful  face,  wherein 
love  and  grief  blent  indescribably,  would  move  the  most 
callous  heart,  while  the  struggle  between  emotion  and  the 
manly  pride  that  would  not  permit  him  to  give  way,  in 
the  young  chieftain's  features,  was  scarcely  less  touching. 
Beautiful  as  were  the  accessories  of  the  pictures,  their 
main  point  was  to  portray  the  natural,  tender  feeling  in- 
duced by  a  parting  that  might  be  forever.  At  first  they 
all  gazed  quietly  and  almost  reverently  at  the  vivid  scene 
of  human  love  and  sorrow,  save  old  Schwartz,  who  fidgeted 
about  as  Dennis  had  never  seen  him  before.  Clearly 
something  was  wrong. 

"  Mr.  Schwartz,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph,  "  you  may  hang 
the  original  picture  on  the  side  as  we  enter,  and  the  copy 
opposite.  We  would  like  to  see  them  up,  and  in  a  better 
light." 

"  Dat's  it,"  snorted  Mr.  Schwartz,  "  I'd  like  to  know 
vich  is  vich. 

"  Vou  do  not  mean  to  say  that  you  cannot  tell  them 
ajj.Trt?  (A'he  original  hung  here  some  time,  and  you  saw 
it  ever}'  day." 

"  I  do  mean  to  say  him,"  said  Mr.  Schwartz,  evidently 
much  vexed  with  himself.     "  I  couldn't  have  believed  dat 


A  MISERABLE  TRIUMPH.  235 

any  von  in  de  vorld  could  so  impose  on  me.  But  de  two  pic- 
tures are  just  de  same  to  a  pin  scratch  in  frame,  subject, 
and  treatment,  and  to  save  my  life  I  cannot  tell  dem  apart.' 

Christine's  face  fairly  glowed  with  triumph,  and  her 
eyes  were  all  aflame  as  she  glanced  at  her  friend.  Miss 
Winthrop  came  and  took  her  cold,  quivering  hands  into 
her  warm  palms,  but  was  scarcely  less  excited.  Dennis 
saw  not  this  side  scene,  so  intent  was  he  on  the  pictures. 

"Do  you  mean  to  say,"  said  Mr.  Consoor,  stepping 
forward,  "  that  one  of  these  paintings  is  a  copy  made  here 
in  Chicago,  and  that  Mr.  Schwartz  cannot  tell  it  from  the 
original  ? " 

"  He  says  he  cannot,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph. 

"And  I'd  like  to  see  de  von  who  can,"  said  old 
Schwartz  gruffly. 

"  Will  you  please  point  out  the  original'"  said  one  of 
the  gentlemen,  "  that  we  may  learn  to  distinguish  them  ? 
For  my  part  they  seem  like  the  twins  whose  mother  knew 
them  apart  by  pink  and  white  ribbons,  and  when  the  rib- 
bons got  mixed  she  could  not  tell  which  was  which." 

Again  Christine's  eyes  glowed  with  triumph. 

"Well,  really,  gentlemen,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph,  "I  would 
rather  you  would  discover  the  copy  yourselves.  Mr.  Con- 
soor, Mr.  Frame,  and  some  others,  I  think,  saw  the  origi- 
nal several  times." 

"Look  at  Mr.  Fleet,"  whispered  Miss-  Winthrop  to 
Christine. 

She  looked,  and  her  attention  was  riveted  to  him. 
Step  by  step  he  had  drawn  nearer,  and  his  eyes  were  eag- 
erly glancing  from  one  to  another  as  if  following  up  a  clue. 
Instinctively  she  felt  that  he  would  solve  the  ques^or,  and 
her  little  hands  clenched,  and  her  brow  grew  dark. 

"  Really,"  said  Mr.  Consoor,  "  I  did  not  know  that  we 
had  an  artist  in  Chicago  who  could  copy  the  work  of  one 


236  T3ARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

of  the  best  European  painters,  so  that  there  need  be  a 
moment's  hesitancy  in  detecting  differences,  but  it  seems 
I  am  mistaken.     1  am  almost  as  puzzled  as  Mr.  Schwartz." 

"  The  frames  are  exactly  alike,"  said  Mr.  Frame. 

"  There  is  a  difference  between  the  two  pictures,"  said 
Mr.  Consoor  slowly.  "  I  can  feel  it  rather  than  see  it. 
They  seem  alike  line  for  line  and  feature  for  feature  in 
every  part.  But  just  where  the  difference  lies  and  in  what 
it  consists  I  cannot  tell  for  the  life  of  me." 

With  the  manner  of  one  who  had  settled  a  difficult 
problem,  Dennis  gave  out  a  sigh  of  relief  so  audibly  that 
several  glanced  at  him. 

"  Perhaps  Mr.  Fleet  from  his  superior  knowledge  and 
long  experience  can  settle  this  question,"  said  Christine 
sarcastically. 

All  eyes  were  turned  toward  him.  He  flushed  pain- 
fully but  said  nothing. 

"  Speak  up,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph good-naturedly,  "if  you 
have  any  opinion  to  give." 

"  I  would  not  presume  to  give  my  opinion  among  so 
many  more  competent  judges." 

"  Come,  Mr.  Fleet,"  said  Christine  with  a  covert  taunt 
in  her  tone,  "  that  is  a  cheap  way  of  making  a  reputation. 
I  fear  the  impression  will  be  given  that,  you  have  no  opin- 
ion to  give." 

Dennis  was  now  very  pale,  as  he  ever  was  under  great 
excitement.  The  old  look  came  again  that  the  young 
ladies  remembered  seeing  at  Miss  Brown's  entertainment. 

"  Come,  speak  up  if  you  can,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph,  shortly. 

"  ^'our  porter,  Mr.  Ludolph?"  said  Mr.  Consoor, 
remeinberiiig  Dennis  only  in  that  capacity.  "Perhaps  he 
has  soine  private  marks  by  which  he  can  enlighten  us." 

Dennis  now  acted  no  longer  as  porter  or  clerk,  but  as 
a  man  amon<r  men. 


A  MISERABLE  TRIUMPH.  237 

Stepping  forward  and  looking  Mr.  Consoor  full  in  the 
face  he  said  : 

"  I  can  prove  to  you,  sir,  that  your  insinuation  is  false 
by  simply  stating  that  I  never  saw  those  pictures  before. 
The  original  had  been  removed  from  the  store  before 
I  came.  I  have  had  therefore  no  opportunity  of  know- 
ing the  copy  from  the  original.  But  the  pictures  are  differ- 
ent, and  I  can  tell  precisely  wherein  I  think  the  difference 
Ues." 

"  Tell  it  then,"  said  several  voices.  Christine  stood  a 
little  back  and  to  one  side  so  that  he  could  not  see  her  face, 
or  he  would  have  hesitated  long  before  he  had  spoken.  In 
the  firm,  decided  tones  of  one  thoroughly  aroused  and  sure 
of  his  ground,  he  proceeded  : 

"  Suppose  this  the  copy,"  said  he,  stepping  to  one  of 
the  pictures.  (Christine  breathed  hard  and  leaned  heavily 
against  her  friend.)  "I  know  of  but  one  in  Chicago  capa- 
ble of  such  exquisite  work,  and  he  did  not  do  it — indeed  he 
could  not,  though  a  master  in  art." 

"  You  refer  to  Mr.  Bruder  ?  "  said  Mr.  Consoor. 

Dennis  bowed  and  continued  :  "  It  is  the  work  of  one 
in  whom  the  imitative  power  is  wonderfully  developed  ;  but 
one  having  never  felt,  or  unable  to  feel  the  emotions  here 
presented  cannot  portray  them.  This  picture  is  but  the 
beautiful  corpse  of  that  one.  While  line  for  Ime,  and 
feature  for  feature,  and  even  leaf  for  leaf  on  the  trees  is 
faithfully  exact,  yet  the  soul,  the  feeling,  the  deep  sorrow- 
ful tenderness  that  you  feel  in  that  picture  rather  than  see, 
is  wanting  in  this.  In  that  picture  you  forget  to  blame  or 
praise,  to  criticise  at  all,  so  deeply  are  your  sympathies 
touched.  It  seems  as  if  in  reality  two  huma  1  hearts  wera 
being  torn  asunder  before  you.  This  you  know  to  be  an 
exquisite  picture  only,  and  can  coolly  criticise  and  dwell 
on  every  part,  and  say  how  admirably  it  is  doi.e." 


238  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

And  Dennis  bowed  and  retired. 

"  By  Jove,  he  is  right,"  exclaimed  Mr.  Consoor ;  and 
approving  faces  and  nodding  heads  confinned  his  judgment 
But  Dennis  enjoyed  not  his  triumph,  for  as  he  turned  he 
met  Christine's  look  of  agony  and  hate,  and  like  lightning 
it  flashed  tlirough  his  mind — "  She  painted  the  picture." 


CHAPTER  XXX. 

LIFE  WITHOUT  LOVE. 


As  Dennis  realized  the  truth,  and  remembered  what 
he  had  said,  his  face  was  scarcely  less  full  of  pain  than 
Christine's.  He  saw  that  her  whole  soul  was  bent  on  an 
imitation  that  none  could  detect,  and  that  he  had  spoiled  it 
all.  But  Christine's  wound  was  deeper  than  that.  She 
had  been  told  again,  clearly  and  correctly,  that  the  sphere 
of  high,  true  art  was  beyond  her  reach.  She  felt  that  the 
verdict  was  true,  and  her  own  judgment  confirmed  every 
word  Dennis  uttered.  But  she  had  done  her  best  ;  there- 
fore her  suffering  was  truly  agony — the  pain  and  despair  at 
failure  in  the  most  cherished  hope  of  life.  There  seemed 
a  barrier  which,  from  the  very  limitations  of  her  being,  she 
could  not  pass.  She  did  not  fail  from  the  lack  of  taste, 
culture,  or  skill,  but  in  that  which  was  like  a  sixth  sense — 
something  she  did  not  possess.  Lacking  the  power  to 
touch  and  move  the  heart,  she  knew  she  could  never  be  a 
grt-at  artist. 

Abruptly  and  without  a  word  she  left  the  room  and 
store,  a'^^ompanicd  by  the  W'inthrops.  Dennis  felt  as  if 
he  could  bite  his  tongue  out,  and  Christine's  face  haunted 
him  like  a  dreadful  apparition.     Wherever  he  turned  he 


LIFE  WITHOUT  LOVE. 


239 


saw  it  so  distorted  by  pain,  and  almost  hate,  that  it  scarcely 
seemed  the  same  that  had  smiled  <3n  him  as  he  entered  at 
ter  invitation. 

"  Truly  God  is  against  all  this,"  groaned  he  to  himself; 
'•'and  what  I  in  my  weakness  could  not  do,  He  has  accom- 
plished by  this  unlooked-for  scene.  She  will  now  ever 
regaid  me  with  aversion." 

Dennis,  like  many  another,  thought  he  saw  God's  plan 
clearly  from  a  mere  glimpse  at  a^art  of  it.  He  at  once 
reached  this  miserable  conclusion,  and  suffered  as  greatly 
as  if  it  had  been  God's  will,  instead  of  his  own  imagina- 
tion. To  wait  and  trust,  is  often  the  latest  lesson  we  learn 
in  life. 

Mr.  Ludolph's  guests,  absorbed  in  the  pictures,  at  first 
scarcely  noticed  the  departures. 

Christine,*  with  consummate  skill  and  care,  kept  her 
relationship  to  the  picture  unknown  to  all  save  the  Win- 
throps,  meaning  not  to  acknowledge  it  unless  she  succeeded. 
But  in  Dennis'  startled  and  pained  face  she  saw  that  he 
had  read  her  secret,  and  this  fact  also  annoyed  her  much. 

"  I  s*hould  like  to  know  the  artist  who  copied  this  paint- 
ing," said  Mr.  Consoor. 

"  The  artist  is  an  amateur,  and  not  willing  to  come 
before  the  public  at  present,"  said  Mr,  Ludolph  so  decid- 
edly that  no  further  questions  were  asked. 

"  I  am  much  interested  in  that  young  clerk  of  yours," 
said  Mr.  Frame.  "  He  seems  to  understand  himself  It 
is  so  hard  to  find  a  good  discriminating  judge  of  pictures. 
Do  you  expect  to  keep  him  ?  " 

''  Yes,  I  do,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph  with  such  emphasis 
that  his  rival  in  trade  also  pressed  that  point  no  farther. 

'"  Well,  really,  Mr.  Ludolph,"  said  one  of  the  gentlemen 
"  you  deal  in  wonders,  mysteries,  and  all  sorts  of  astonish- 
in>j  things  here.     We  have  an  unknown  artist  in  Chicago 


240  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

deserving  an  ovation ;  you  have  in  your  employ  a  prince 
of  critics,  and  if  I  mistake  not  he  is  the  same  who  sang  at 
Brown's  some  little  time  ago.  Miss  Brown  told  me  that  he 
was  your  porter." 

"Yes,  I  took  him  as  a  stranger  and  out  of  work,  and 
knew-  nothing  of  him.  But  he  proved  an  educated  and 
accomplished  man,  who  will  doubtless  be  of  great  use  to 
me  in  time.  Of  course  I  promoted  him  when  I  found  him 
out."  These  last  remarks  were  made  more  for  Mr. 
Frame's  benefit  than  any  one  else.  He  intended  that  his 
rival  should  knowingly  violate  all  courtesy  if  he  sought  to 
lure  Dennis  away.  After  admiring  the  paintings  and  other 
new  things  recently  received,  the  gentlemen  bowed  them- 
selves out. 

At  the  entrance  of  the  store  Mr.  Winthrop — feeling 
awkwardly  in  the  presence  of  the  disappointed  girl  — 
pleaded  business,  and  bade  adieu  with  a  warm  grasp  of 
the  hand,  and  many  assurances  that  she  had  succeeded 
beyond  his  belief. 

"  I  know  you  mean  kindly  in  what  you  say,"  said  Chris- 
tine, while  not  the  slightest  gleam  lighted  up  her  pale,  sad 
face.     "  Good-bye." 

She,  too,  was  relieved,  and  wished  to  be  alone.  Miss 
Winthrop  sought  to  comfort  her  friend  as  they  walked 
homeward. 

"  Christine,  you  look  really  ill.  I  don't  see  why  ycu 
take  this  matter  so  to  heart.  You  have  achieved  a  success 
that  would  turn  any  head  but  yours.  I  could  not  believe 
it  possible  had  I  not  seen  it.  Your  ambition  and  ideal 
are  so  lofty  that  you  will  always  make  yourself  miserable 
by  aiming  at  the  impossible.  As  Mr.  Fleet  said,  I  do  not 
btlievs  there  is  another  in  the  city  who  could  have  done 
so  well,  and  if  you  can  do  that  now,  what  may  you  not  ac- 
complish by  a  few  years  more  of  work  ?  " 


LIFE  WITHOUT  LOVE.  241 

"  That's  the  terrible  part  of  it,"  said  Christine  with  a 
long  sigh.  •  "  Susie,  I  have  got  my  growth.  I  can  never 
be  a  real  artist,  and  no  one  living  can  ever  know  the  bit- 
terness of  my  disappointment.  I  do  not  believe  in  the  im- 
mortality that  you  do,  and  this  was  my  only  chance  to  live 
bey "  nd  the  brief  hour  of  my  life.  If  I  could  only  have  won 
for  myself  a  place  among  the  great  names  that  the  world 
will  ever  honor,  I  might  with  more  content  let  the  candle 
of  my  existence  flicker  out  when  it  must.  But  I  have 
learned  to-day  what  I  have  often  feared,  that  Christine 
Ludolph  must  soon  end  in  a  forgotten  handful  of  dust." 

"  O  Christine,  if  you  could  only  believe  !  " 

"  I  cannot.  I  tried  in  my  last  sickness,  but  vainly.  I 
am  more  convinced  than  ever  of  the  correctness  of  my 
father's  views." 

Miss  Winthrop  sighed  deeply.  "  Why  are  you  so  de- 
spondent ? "  she  at  last  asked. 

As  if  half  speaking  to  herself,  Christine  repeated  the 
words,  "  *  Painted  by  one  having  never  felt,  or  unable  to 
feel,  the  emotions  presented,  and  therefore  cannot  portray 
them.'  That  is  just  the  trouble.  I  tried  to  speak  in  a 
language  I  do  not  know.  Susie,  I  believe  I  am  about  half 
ice.  Sometimes  I  think  I  am  like  Undine,  and  have  no 
soul.  I  know  I  have  no  heart,  in  the  sense  that  you 
have. 

"  I  live  a  very  cold  sort  of  life,"  she  continued  with  a 
slight  shudder.  "  I  seem  surrounded  by  invisible  barriers 
that  1  cannot  pass.  I  can  see  beyond  what  I  want,  bui 
cannot  reach  it.  O  Susie,  if  you  knew  what  I  suffered  wnen 
sick  !  Everything  seemed  slipping  from  me.  And  yet 
nhy  I  should  so  wish  to  live,  I  hardly  know,  when  my  life 
is  so  narrowed  down." 

"  You  see  the  disease  but  not  the  remedy,"  sighed 
Susie. 


242  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY 

''What  is  the  remeriv  ?" 

"  Love.  Love  to  God,  and  I  may  add  love  for  some 
good  man." 

Christine  stopped  a  moment  and  ahnost  stamped  her 
foot  impatiently. 

"  You  discourage  me  more  than  any  one  else,"  she 
cried.  "As  to  loving  God,  how  can  I  love  merely  a  name  ? 
and  even  if  He  existed,  how  could  I  love  a  Being  who  left 
His  world  so  full  of  vile  evils  ?  As  to  human  love,  faugh, 
I  have  had  enough  of  romantic  attachments." 

"  Do  you  never  intend  to  marry  ? " 

"  Susie,  you  are  the  friend  of  my  soul,  and  I  trust  you 
and  you  only  with  our  secret.  Yes,  I  expect  to  marry,  but 
not  in  this  land.  You  know  that  in  Germany  my  fathei 
will  eventually  be  a  noble,  the  representative  of  one  of  the 
most  ancient  and  honorable  families.  We  shall  soon  have 
sufficient  wealth  to  resume  our  true  position  there.  A 
husband  will  then  be  found  for  me.  I  only  stipulate  that 
he  will  be  able  to  give  me  position  among  the  first,  and 
gratify  my  bent  for  art  to  the  utmost." 

"  Well,  Christine,  you  are  a  strange  girl,  and  your  dream 
of  the  future  is  stranger  still." 

"  Sometimes  I  think  that  all  is  a  dream,  and  may  end 
like  one.  Nothing  seems  certain  or  real,  or  turns  out  as 
one  expects.  Think  of  it.  A  nobody  who  swept  my  father's 
store  the  other  day  has  this  morning  made  such  havoc  in 
my  dream  that  I  am  sick  at  heart." 

"  But  you  cannot  blame  Mr.  Fleet.  He  did  it  uncon- 
sciously \  he  was  goaded  on  to  it.  No  mau  would  have 
done  otherwise.  You  surely  do  not  feel  hardly  towards 
hiir,  ".'  '' 

"  We  do  not  naturally  love  the  lips  and  bless  the  voice 
chat  tell  us  of  an  incurable  disease.  O  no,"  she  added, 
"why  should  I  think  of  him  at  all.     He  merely  happened 


LIFE  WITHOUT  LOVE.  243 

to  point  out  what  I  half  suspected  myself.  And  yet  the 
peculiar  way  this  stranger  crosses  my  path  from  time  to 
time,  almost  makes  me  superstitious." 

"  And  you  seem  to  have  peculiar  power  over  him. 
He  would  have  assuredly  left  us  in  the  lurch  at  our  tSb'cau 
party  had  it  not  been  for  you,  and  I  would  not  have  blamed 
him.  And  to-day  he  seemed  troubled  and  pained  beyond 
expression  when  he  read  from  your  face,  as  I  imagine,  that 
you  were  the  author  of  the  picture." 

"  Yes,  I  saw  that  he  discovered  the  fact,  and  this  pro- 
vokes me  also.     If  he  should  speak  his  thoughts — " 

"  I  do  not  think  he  will.  I  am  sure  he  will  not  if  you 
caution  him." 

"  That  I  will  not  do,  and  I  think  on  the  whole  he  has 
too  much  sense  to  speak  carelessly  of  what  he  imagined  he 
saw  in  a  lady's  face.  And  now,  Susie,  good-b\'e  ;  I  shall 
not  inflict  my  miserable  self  longer  upon  you  to-day,  and  I 
am  one  who  can  best  cure  my  wounds  in  solitude." 

*'  Do  you  cure  them,  Christine,  or  do  you  only  cover 
them  up.-*  If  I  had  your  creed  nothing  could  cure  my 
wounds.  Time  might  deaden  the  pain,  and  I  forget  them 
in  other  things,  but  I  do  not  see  where  any  cure  could 
come  from.  O  Christine,  you  did  me  good  service  when 
in  the  deepening  twilight  of  Miss  Brown's  parlor  you 
showed  me  my  useless,  unbelieving  life.  But  I  do  believe 
now.  The  cross  is  radiant  to  me  now — more  radiant  than 
the  one  that  so  startled  us  then.  Mr.  Fleet's  words  were 
true,  I  know,  as  I  know  my  own  existence.  I  could  die 
for  Him." 

Christine  frowned  and  said  almost  harshly,  "  I  don't 
believe  in  a  religion  so  full  of  crosses  and  death.  Why 
could  not  the  all-powerful  Being  you  believe  in  take  away 
the  evil  from  the  world  .? " 

"  That   is  just  what  He  came  to  do.     In   that  very 


2  44  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

character  He  was  pointed  out  by  His  authorized  forenm- 
ner :  '  Behold  the  Lamb  of  God  that  taketh  away  the  sin  of 
the  world.' " 

"  \\  hy  does  He  not  do  it  then  ?  "  a^ked  Christine  pet- 
ulantly. "  Centuries  have  passed ;  patience  itself  is 
wearied  out.  .  He  has  had  time  enough,  if  He  ever  meant 
or  had  the  power  to  fulfil  the  promise.  But  the  world  is 
as  full  of  evil  and  suffering  as  ever.  Susie,  I  would  not 
disturb  your  credulous  faith,  for  it  seems  to  do  you  good. 
But  to  me  Christ  was  a  noble  but  mistaken  man,  dead  and 
buried  centuries  ago.  He  can  do  for  me  no  more  than 
Socrates.  They  vigorously  attacked  evil  in  their  day,  but 
evil  was  too  much  for  them,  as  it  is  for  us.  We  must  just 
got  the  most  we  can  out  of  life,  and  endure  what  we  cannot 
prevent  or  escape.  An  angel  could  not  convert  me  to-day 
— no,  not  even  Susie  Winthrop,  and  that  is  saying  more 
still  ;"  and  with  a  hasty  kiss  she  vanished. 

Susie  looked  wistfully  after  her,  and  then  bent  her 
steps  homeward  with  a  pitying  face. 

Christine  at  once  went  to  her  own  private  room.  Put- 
ting on  a  loose  wrapper  she  threw  herself  on  a  lounge,  and 
buried  her  face  in  the  cushions. 

Her  life  seemed  growing  narrow  and  meagre.  Hour 
after  hour  passed,  and  the  late  afternoon  sun  was  shining 
into  her  room  when  she  arose  from  her  bitter  revery,  and 
summed  up  all  in  a  few  words  spoken  aloud,  as  was  her 
custom  when  alone. 

"  Must  I,  after  all,  come  down  to  the  Epicurean  Philos- 
ophy. •  Let  us  eat,  drink,  and  be  merry,  for  to-morrow  we 
die? '  I  seem  on  a  narrow  island,  the  ocean  is  all  around 
me,  and  the  tide  is  rising,  rising.  It  will  cover  soon  where 
I   stand,  and  tlien  what  becomes  of  Christine  I>udolph  ?  " 

A  look  of  anguish  came  into  the  fair  young  face,  and  a 
slight  shudder  passed  over  her.     She  glanced  around  a 


LIFE  WITHOUT  LOVE.  245 

room  furnished  in  costly  elegance.     She  saw  her  lovely 
person  in  the  mirror  opposite,  and  exclaimed  : 

"  What  mystery  it  all  is  !  I  have  so  murh,  and  yet  so 
utterly  fail  in  having  that  which  contents.  1  have  all  that 
wealth  can  purchase ;  and  multitudes  act  as  if  that  were 
enough.  I  know  I  am  beautiful.  I  can  see  that  yonder 
for  myself,  as  well  as  read  it  in  admiring  eyes.  And  yet 
my  maid  is  better  contented  than  I,  and  the  boy  who 
blacks  the  boots  better  satisfied  with  his  lot  than  either  of 
us.  I  am  raised  so  high  that  I  can  see  how  much  more 
there  is  or  might  be  beyond.  I  feel  like  one  led  into  a 
splendid  vestibule  only  to  find  that  the  palace  is  wanting, 
or  that  it  is  a  mean  hovel.  All  that  I  have  only  mocks  me, 
and  becomes  a  means  of  torture.  All  that  I  am  and  have, 
ought  to  be,  might  be,  a  mere  prelude,  an  earnest  and 
preparation  for  something  better  beyond.  But  I  am  told, 
and  must  believe,  that  this  is  all,  and  I  may  lose  this  in  a 
moment  and  forever.  It  is, as  if  a  noble  strain  of  music 
commenced  sweetly,  and  then  suddenly  broke  down  into  a 
few  discordant  notes  and  ceased.  It  is  like  my  picture,  all 
very  well,  but  with  that  which  would  speak  to  and  move 
tlie  heart,  year  after  year,  when  the  mere  beauty  ceased  to 
to  please,  that  life  or  something  is  wanting.  What  were 
his  words  i* — '  This  picture  is  but  the  beautiful  corpse  of 
the  other,'  and  my  life  is  but  a  cold  marble  efiigy  of  a  true 
life.  And  yet  is  there  any  true  and  better  life  ?  If  there 
is  nothing  better  beyond,  I  have  been  carried  forward  too 
far.  Miss  Brown  thoroughly  enjoys  champagne  and  flir- 
tations. Susie  Winthrop  is  happy  in  her  superstition,  as 
any  one  might  be,  could  they  believe  what  she  does.  But 
I  have  gone  past  the  power  of  taking  up  these  things,  as  I 
have  gone  past  my  childhood  sports.  And  now  what  is 
there  for  me  ?  My  most  dear  and  cherished  hope — a  hope 
that  shone  above  my  life  like  a  sun — has  been  blown  away 


246  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAV. 

by  the  breath  of  my  father's  clerk  (it  required  no  greater 
power  to  bring  me  down  to  my  true  level),  and  I  hoped  to 
be  a  queen  among  men,  high-born,  but  crowned  with  the 
richer  coronet  of  genius.  I,  who  hoped  to  win  so  high  a 
place  that  men  would  speak  of  me  with  honest  praise,  now 
and  in  all  future  time,  must  be  contented  as  a  mere  accom- 
plished woman,  deemed  worthy  perhaps  in  time  to  grace 
some  nobleman's  halls  who  in  the  nice  social  scale  abroad 
may  stand  a  little  higher  than  myself.  I  meant  to  shine 
and  dazzle,  to  stoop  to  give  in  every  case ;  but  now  I  must 
take  what  I  can  get,  with  an  humble  'Thank  you,'"  and 
she  clenched  her  little  powerless  hands  in  impotent  revolt 
at  what  seemed  very  cruel  destiny. 

She  appeared  at  the  dinner-table  outwardly  calm  and 
quiet.  Her  father  did  not  share  in  her  bitter  disappoint- 
ment, and  she  saw  that  he  did  not,  and  so  felt  more  alone. 
He  regarded  her  success  as  remarkable  (as  it  truly  was), 
having  never  believed  she  coi^d  copy  a  picture  so  exactly 
as  to  deceive  an  ordinarily  good  observer.  When,  there- 
fore, old  Schwartz  and  others  -were  unable  to  distinguish 
between  the  pictures,  he  was  more  than  satisfied.  He  was 
sorry  that  Dennis  had  spoiled  the  triumph,  but  could 
not  blame  him.  At  the  same  time  he  recognized  in  Fleet 
another  and  most  decided  proof  of  intelligence  on  ques- 
tions of  Art,  for  he  knew  that  his  criticism  was  just.  He 
believed  that  when  the  true  knight  that  his  ambition  would 
choose  appeared,  with  golden  spurs  and  jewelled  crest, 
tlien  her  deeper  nature  would  awaken,  and  she  far  surpass 
all  j)rt.^\  ious  elTort.  Moreover,  he  did  not  fully  understand 
or  Li'lcr  into  her  lofty  ambition.  I'o  see  her  settled  in  life, 
ti'Lic-d.  rich,  and  a  rcco;:,iiizcd  leader  in  the  aristocracy  of 
his  own  huid,  was  his  highest  aspiration  as  fai  as  she  was 
coriccvnefl. 

He  cornmenced,  therefore,  in  a  strain  of  compliment  to 


LIFE  WITHOUT  LOVE.  247 

cheer  his  daughter  and  rally  her  courage,  but  she  shook 
her  head  sadly,  and  said  so  decidedly,  "Father  let  us 
change  the  subject,"  that  with  some  surprise  at  her  feel- 
ings, he  yielded  to  her  wish,  thinking  that  a  little  time  and 
experience  would  moderate  her  ideas  and  banish  the  pain 
oi"  disappointment.  It  was  a  quiet  meal,  each  being  occu- 
pied by  their  own  thoughts.  Soon  after  he  was  immersed 
in  his  cigar  and  some  business  papers  for  the  evening. 

It  was  a  mild,  summer-like  night,  and  a  warm,  gentle 
rain  was  falling.  Even  in  the  midst  of  a  great  city,  the 
sweet  odors  of  spring  found  their  way  to  the  private  parlor 
where  Christine  sat  by  the  window,  still  lost  in  pair.tul 
thoughts. 

"  Nature  is  full  of  hope,  and  the  promise  of  coming  life. 
So  ought  I  to  be  in  this  my  spring-time.  Why  am  I  not  ? 
If  I  am  sad  and  disappointed  in  my  spring,  how  dreary 
will  be  my  autumn,  when  leaf  after  leaf  of  beauty,  health, 
and  strength  drop  away." 

A  muffled  figure,  seemingly  regardless  of  the  rain, 
passed  slowly  down  the  opposite  side  of  the  street 
Though  the  person  cast  but  a  single  quick  glance  toward 
her  window,  and  though  the  twilight  was  deepening,  some- 
thing in  the  passer-b)'  suggested  Dennis  Fleet*  For  a 
moment  she  wished  she  could  speak  to  him.  She  felt  very 
lonely.  Solitude  had  done  her  no  good.  Her  troubles 
only  grew  darker  and  more  real  as  she  brooded  over  them. 
She  instinctively  felt  that  her  father  could  not  understand 
her,  and  she  had  never  been  able  to  go  to  him  for  sympa- 
thy. He  was  not  the  kind  of  person  that  any  one  would 
seek  for  such  a  purpose.  Christine  was  not  inclined  to 
confidence,  and  there  was  really  no  one  who  knew  her 
deeper  feelings,  and  who  could  enter  into  her  real  hopes 
for  life.  She  was  so  proud  and  cold  that  few  ever  thought 
of  giving  confidence,  much  less  of  asking  hers. 


248  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

Up  to  the  time  of  her  last  sickness  she  had  been  strong, 

self-confident,  almost  assured  of  success.  At  times  she 
recognized  dimly  that  something  was  wrong,  as  when  sing- 
ing her  best  she  could  only  secure  noisy,  transient  applause, 
while  she  saw  another  on  the  same  occasion,  touch  the 
tieart  :  but  she  shut  her  eyes  to  the  unwelcome  truth,  and 
determined  to  succeed.  But  her  sickness  and  fears  at  that 
time,  and  now  a  failure  that  seemed  to  destroy  the  ambi- 
tion  of  her  life,  all  united  in  greatly  shaking  her  self- 
confidence. 

This  evening,  as  never  before,  she  was  conscious  of 
weakness  and  dependence.  With  the  instinct  of  one  sink- 
ing, her  spirit  longed  for  help  and  support.  Then  the 
tliought  suddenly  occurred  to  her,  "  Perhaps  this  young 
stranger  who  so  clearly  pointed  out  the  disease,  may  also 
show  the  way  to  some  remedy." 

But  the  figure  had  passed  on.  In  a  moment  more 
piide  and  conventionality  resumed  sway,  and  she  smiled 
bitterly,  saying  to  herself: 

"  What  a  weak  fool  I  am  to-night.  Of  all  things  do  not 
become  a  romantic  Miss  again." 

She  went  to  her  piano  and  struck  into  a  brilliant  strain. 
For  a  few  moments  the  music  was  of  a  forced  and  defiant 
character,  loud,  gay,  but  no  real  or  rollicking  mirth  in  it, 
and  it  soon  ceased.  Then  in  sharp  contrast  came  a  sad, 
weird  German  ballad,  and  this  was  real.  In  its  pathos 
her  burdened  heart  found  expression,  and  whoever  listened 
then  would  not  merely  have  admired,  they  would  have  felt 
One  song  followed  another.  All  the  pent-up  feeling  of  the 
day  seemed  to  find  natural  rlow  in  the  plaintive  minstrelsy 
of  her  own  land. 

Suddenly  she  ceased  and  went  to  her  window\  The 
muftled  fiLTure  stood  in  the  shadow  of  an  angle  in  the  atti- 
tude of  a  listener.     A  moment  later  it  vanished  in  the  dusk 


DENNIS'  LOVE  PUT  TO  PRACTICAL  USE.  249 

toward  the  business  part  of  the  city.  The  quick  footsteps 
died  away  and  only  the  patter  of  the  falling  rain  bfoke  the 
silence.  Christine  felt  sure  that  it  was  Dennis.  At  first 
her  feeling  was  one  of  pleasure.  His  coming  and  evident 
interest  took  somewhat,  she  scarcely  knew  why,  from  her 
sense  of  loneliness.  Soon  her  pride  awoke,  however,  and 
she  said : 

"  He  has  no  business  here  to  watch  and  listen.  I  will 
show  him,  with  all  his  taste  and  intelligence,  we  have  no 
ground  in  common  on  which  he  can  presume." 

Her  father  had  also  listened  to  the  music,  and  said  to 
himself: 

"  Christine  is  growing  a  little  sentimental.  She  takes 
this  disappointment  too  much  at  heart.  I  must  touch  her 
pride  with  the  spur  a  little,  and  that  will  make  her  ice  and 
steel  in  a  moment.  It  is  no  slight  task  to  keep  a  girl's 
heart  safe  till  you  want  to  use  it.  I  will  wait  till  the  prac- 
tical daylight  of  to-morrow,  and  then  she  shall  look  at  the 
world  through  my  eyes  again." 


CHAPTER  XXXI. 

DENNIS'   LOVE   PUT   TO    PRACTICAL    USE, 

The  day  following  his  unlucky  criticism  of  the  pictures 
was  one  of  great  despondency  to  Dennis.  He  read  in 
Christine's  face  that  he  had  wounded  her  sorely,  and 
though  she  knew  it  to  be  unintentional,  would  it  not  prej- 
udice her^juind  against  him,  and  snap  the  slender  thread 
by  which  he  hoped  to  draw  across  the  gulf  between  them 
the  cord^  and  then  the  cable,  that  might  unite  their  lives, 
in  time  ? 


250  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

In  the  evening  his  restless,  troubled  spirit  drove  him,  in 
spite  of  ihe  rain,  to  seek  to  be  at  least  nearer  to  her.  He 
felt  sure  that  in  the  dusk  and  wrapped  in  his  greatcoat 
he  would  not  be  noticed,  but  was  mistaken,  as  we  have 
seen.  He  was  rewarded,  for  he  heard  her  sing  as  never 
before,  as  he  did  not  believe  she  could  sing.  For  the  first 
time  her  rich,  thoroughly  trained  voice  had  the  sweetness 
and  power  of  feeling.  To  Dennis  her  song  seemed  like  an 
appeal,  a  cry  for  help,  and  his  heart  responded  in  the  deep- 
est sympathy.  As  he  walked  homeward  he  said  to  him- 
self: 

"  She  could  be  a  true  artist,  perhaps  a  great  one,  foi 
she  can  feel.  She  has  a  heart.  She  has  a  taste  and  skill 
in  touch  that  few  can  surpass.  I  can  scarcely  believe  the 
beautiful  coloring  and  faultless  lines  of  that  picture  are 
her  work." 

He  longed  for  a  chance  to  speak  with  her  and  explain. 
He  felt  that  he  had  so  much  to  say,  and  in  a  thousand  im- 
aginary ways  introduced  the  subject  of  her  painting.  He 
hoped  he  might  find  her  sketching  in  some  of  the  rooms 
again.  He  thought  he  -knew  her  better  having  heard  her 
sing,  and  that  he  could  speak  to  her  quite  frankly. 

The  next  day  she  came  to  the  store,  but  passed  him 
without  the  slightest  notice.  He  hoped  she  had  not  seen 
him,  and,  as  she  passed  out,  so  placed  himself  that  she 
must  see  him,  and  secured  for  his  pains  only  a  slight,  cold 
inclination  of  the  head. 

"It  is  as  I  feared,"  he  said  bitterly.  "She  detests  m.e 
fc>r  having  spoiled  her  triumph.  She  is  not  just,"  he 
added  angrily.  "  Slie  has  no  sense  of  justice,  or  she  would 
not  blame  me.  What  a  mean-spirited  craven  I  woulj 
have  been  had  I  shrunk  away  under  her  caunts  yesterday. 
Well,  I  can  be  proud  too." 

When  she  came  in  again  he  did  not  raise  his  eyes,  and 


DENNIS'  LOVE  PUT  TO  PRACTICAL  USE.         251 

wheii  she  passed  out,  he  was  in  a  distant  part  of  the  store. 
Christine  saw  no  tall  muffled  figure  under  her  window 
again,  though  she  had  the  curiosity  to  look.  That  even 
thi>.  humble  admirer  whom  she  cared  not  a  jot  for  should 
show  such  independence,  rather  nettled  and  annoyed  her 
for  a  moment.  But  she  paid  no  more  heed  to  him  than 
to  the  other  clerks. 

But  what  was  the  merest  jar  to  Christine's  vanity,  cost 
Dennis  a  desperate  struggle.  It  required  no  effort  on  her 
part  to  pass  him  by  without  a  glance.  To  him  it  was  tor- 
ture. In  a  few  days  she  ceased  to  think  about  him  at  all, 
and  only  remembered  him  in  connection  with  her  disap- 
pointment. But  she  was  restless,  could  settle  down  to  no 
work,  and  had  lost  her  zest  in  her  old  pleasures.  She  tried 
to  act  as  usual,  for  she  saw  her  father's  eye  was  on  her. 
He  had  not  much  indulgence  for  anyone's  weaknesses' 
save  his  own,  and  often  by  a  little  cold  satire  would  sting 
her  to  the  very  quick.  On  the  other  hand,  his  admiration, 
openly  expressed  in  a  certain  courtly  gallantry,  nourished 
her  pride  but  not  her  heart.  Though  she  tried  to  keep  up 
her  usual  routine,  her  manner  was  forced  before  him,  and 
languid  when  alone.     But  he  said : 

"  All  this  will  pass  away  like  a  cold  snap  in  Spring, 
and  the  old  zest  will  come  again  in  a  few  days." 

It  did,  but  from  a  cause  he  could  not  understand,  and 
which  his  daughter  with  consummate  skill  and  care  con- 
cealed. He  thought  it  was  only  the  old  zest  rallying  after 
a  sharp  frost  of  disappointment. 

Dennis'  pride  gave  way  before  her  cool  and  unstudied 
indifference.  It  was  clearly  evident  to  him  that  he  had 
no  hold  upon  her  life  whatever,  and  how  ever  to  gain  any 
he  did  not  see.     He  became  more  and  more  deiected. 

"  She  must  have  a  heart,  or  I  could  not  love  her  so,  but 
it  is  so  encased  in  ice  I  fear  I  can  never  reach  it." 


25a  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

That  something  was  wrong  with  Dennis,  any  friend 
who  cared  for  Lm.  at  all  might  see.  The  Bruders  did,  and 
with  the  quick  intuitions  of  woman,  Mrs.  Bruderhalf  gues- 
sed the  cause.  Mr.  Bruder  seeing  preoccupation '  and 
sometimes  weary  apathy  in  Dennis'  face,  would  say,  "  !Mr. 
Fleet  is  not  well.'' 

Then,  as  even  this  slight  notice  of  his  different  appear- 
ance seemed  to  give  pain,  Mr.  Bruder  was  patiently  and 
kindly  blind  to  his  pupil's  inattention. 

He  faithfully  kept  up  all  his  duties  on  Sunday  as  during 
the  week  ;  but  all  was  now  hard  work. 

Some  little  time  after  the  unlucky  morning  which  he 
could  never  think  of  without  an  expression  of  pain,  he  went 
to  his  mission-class  as  usual.  He  heard  his  boys  recite 
their  lessons,  said  a  few  poor  lame  words  in  explanation, 
and  then  leaned  his  head  listlessly  and  wearily  on  his  hand. 
He  was  startled  by  hearing  a  sweet  voice  say  :    • 

"  Well,  Mr.  Fleet,  are  you  not  going  to  welcome  a  new 
laborer  into  your  corner  of  the  vineyard  ?  " 

With  a  deep  flush  he  saw  that  Miss  Winthrop  was  in 
charge  of  the  class  next  to  him,  and  that  he  had  been  ob- 
livious to  her  presence  nearly  an  hour.  He  tried  to  apolo- 
gize.    But  she  interrupted  him,  saying : 

"  Mr.  Fleet,  you  are  not  well.     Any  one  can  see  that." 

Then  Dennis  blushed  as  if  he  had  a  raging  fever,  and 
she  was  perplexed. 

The  closing  exercises  of  \  he  school  now  occupied  them, 
and  then  they  walked  out  together. 

•'  Mr.  Fleet,"  she  said,  "  you  never  accepted  my  invi- 
tation. We  have  not  seen  you  at  our  house.  But  perhaps 
your  circle  of  friends  is  so  large  that  you  do  not  wish  to 
add  to  it." 

Dennis  could  not  forbear  a.  smile  at  the  suggestion,  but 
he  said  in  apology : 


DENisriS'  LOVE  PUT  TO  PRACTICAL  USE.        253 

"  I  do  not  visit  any  one,  save  a  gentleman  fir,m  vhom 
I  am  taking  lessons," 

"  Do  you  mean  to  say  that  you  have  no  friends  at  all 
in  this  great  city  ? " 

"  Well,  I  suppose  that  is  nearly  the  truth,  that  is,  in  the 
.sense  you  use  the  term.     My  teacher  and  his  wife — " 

"  Nonsense !  I  mean  friends  of  one's  own  age,  people 
of  the  same  culture  and  status  as  yourself.  I  think  we 
need  such  society,  as  truly  as  food  and  air.  I  did  not 
mean  those  whom  business  or  duty  brought  you  in  contact 
with,  or  who  are  friendly  or  grateful  as  a  matter  of  course." 

"  I  have  made  no  progress  since  my  introduction  to 
society  at  Miss  Brown's,"  said  Dennis. 

"  But  you  had  the  sincere  and  cordial  offer  of  introduc 
tion,"  said  Miss  Winthrop,  looking  a  little  hurt 

"  I  feel  hardly  fit  for  society,"  said  Dennis,  all  out  of 
sorts  with  himself.  '*  It  seems  that  I  can  only  blunder  and 
give  pain.     But  I  am  indeed  grateful  for  your  kindness." 

Miss  Winthrop  looked  into  his  worn,  pale  face,  and  in- 
stinctively felt  that  something  was  wrong,  and  she  felt  real 
sympathy  for  the  lonely  young  man,  isolated  among  thou- 
sands.    She  said  gently  but  decidedly : 

"  I  did  mean  my  invitation  kindly,  and  I  truly  wished 
you  to  come.  The  only  proof  you  can  give  that  you  ap- 
preciate my  courtesy,  is  to  accept  an  invitation  for  to-mor- 
row evening.  I  intend  having  a  little  musical  entertain- 
ment." 

Quick  as  light  flashed  the  thought,  "  Christine  will  be 
there.  '  He  said  promptly : 

"  I  will  come,  and  thank  you  for  the  imitation.  If  I 
jm  awkward,  you  must  remember  that  I  have  never  minr- 
gled  in  Chicago  society,  and  for  a  long  time  not  in  any." 

She  smiled  merrily  at  him  and  said : 

"  Don't  do  anything  dreadful,  Mr.  Fleet." 


2  54  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

He  caught  her  mood,  and  asked  what  had  brought 
her  down  from  her  theological  peak  to  such  a  valley  of  hu- 
miliation as  a  mission  school. 

"  You  and  Miss  Ludolph,"  she  answered  seriously 
'  Between  you,  you  gave  me  such  a  lesson  that  afternoon 
yt  Miss  Brown's,  that  I  have  led  a  different  life  ever  since. 
Christine  made  all  as  dark  as  despair,  and  against  that 
darkness  you  placed  the  fiery  Cross.  I  have  tried  to  cling 
to  the  true  ;ross  ever  since.  Now  He  could  not  say  to  me 
'  Inasmuch  as  ye  did  it  not.'  And  oh  ! "  said  she,  turning 
to  Dennis  with  a  smile  full  of  the  light  of  heaven,  "  His 
service  is  so  verj'  sweet !  I  heard  last  week  that  teachers 
were  wanted  at  this  mission-school,  so  I  came,  and  am 
glad  to  find  you  a  neighbor." 

Dennis'  face  also  kindled  at  her  enthusiasm,  but  after  a 
moment  grew  sad  again. 

"  I  do  not  always  give  so  lifeless  a  lesson  as  to-day," 
he  said  in  a  low  voice. 

"  Mr.  Fleet,  you  are  not  well.  I  can  see  that  you  look 
worn  and  greatly  wearied.  Are  you  not  in  some  way  over- 
taxing yourself?" 

Again  that  sensitive  flush,  but  he  only  said  : 

"  I  assure  you  I  am  well.  Perhaps  I  have  worked  a 
little  hard.     That  is  all." 

"  Well,  then,  come  to  our  house  and  play  a  little,  to- 
morrow evening,"  she  answered  from  the  platform  of  a 
street  car,  and  was  borne  away. 

Dennis  went  to  his  lonely  room,  full  of  self-reproach. 

"  Does  she  find  Christ's  service  so  sweet,  and  do  I  find 
it  so  dull  and  hard  ?  Does  human  love  alpne  constrain 
me,  and  not  the  love  of  Christ  ?  Truly  I  am  growrng  weak. 
Every  one  says  I  look  sick  ;  I  think  I  am,  body  and  soul, 
and  am  ceasing  to  be  a  man  ;  but  with  God's  help  I  wiU 
be  one — and  what  is  more,  a  Christian.     I  thank  you,  Miss 


DENNIS'  LOVE  PUT  TO  PRACTICAL  USE,         255 

Wintlirop  ;  you  have  helped  me  more  than  I  have  helped 
you.  I  will  accept  your  invitation  to  go  out  into  the 
world.  I  will  no  longer  mope,  brood,  and  perish  in  the 
damp  and  shade  of  my  own  sick  fancies.  If  I  cannot  w  in 
her,  I  can  at  least  be  a  man-  without  her,"  and  he  felt  bet- 
ter and  stronger  than  he  had  for  a  long  time.  The  day 
was  breaking  again. 

In  accordance  with  a  custom  that  was  growing  with 
him  ever  since  the  memorable  evening  when  Bill  Cronk 
befriended  him,  he  laid  the  whole  matter  before  his  Heav- 
enly Father,  as  a  child  tells  an  earthly  parent  all  his  heart. 
Then  he  added  one  simple  prayer,  "Guide  me  in  all 
things." 

The  next  day  was  brighter  and  better  than  its  forerun- 
ners. "For  some  reason  I  feel  more  like  myself,"  he 
thought.  After  the  excitement  and  activity  of  a  busy  day, 
he  said : 

"  I  can  conquer  this,  if  I  must." 

But  when  he  made  his  simple  toilet,  and  was  on  his 
way  to  Miss  Winthrop's  residence,  his  heart  began  to  flut- 
ter strangely,  and  he  knew  the  reason.  Miss  Winthrop 
welcomed  him  most  cordially,  and  put  him  at  his  ease  in  a 
moment,  as  only  a  true  lady  can.  Then  she  turned  to 
receive  other  guests.  He  looked  around.  Christine  was 
not  there — and  his  heart  sank  like  lead.  "  She  will  not  be 
here,"  he  sighed.  But  the  guests  had  not  ceased  coming, 
and  every  new  arrival  caused  a  flutter  of  hopes  and  fears. 
He  both  longfd  and  dreaded  to  meet  her.  At  last,  when 
he  had  about  given  up  seeing  her,  he  suddenly  saw  her 
advancing  up  the  parlor  on  her  father's  arm.  Never  had 
she  seemed  so  dazzlingly  beautiful.  He  was  at  that 
instant  talking  to  Mr.  Winthrop,  and  for  a  few  moments 
that  get. 'leman  was  perplexed  at  his  incoherent  answers, 
iuiJ  the  changes  in  his  face.     Having  paid  their  respect? 


256  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

to  tlie  daughter,  Mr.  and  Miss  Ludolph  came  toward  Mr. 
Winthrop,  and  of  course  Dennis  had  to  meet  them.  Hav- 
ing greeted  them  warmly,  Mr.  Winthrop  said  : 

"  or  course  you  do  not  need  an  introduction  to  Mr 
Fleet. 

Dennis  had  shrunk  a  little  back,  and  at  first  they  had 
not  noticed  him.     Mr.  Ludolph  said  good-naturedly : 

"  Glad  to  see  you,  Mr.  Fleet,  and  will  be  still  more 
glad  to  hear  your  fine  voice." 

But  Christine  merely  bowed  as  to  one  with  whom  her 
acquaintance  was  slight,  and  turned  away.  At  first  Den- 
nis had  blushed,  and  his  heart  had  fluttered  like  a  young 
girl's  ;  but  as  she  turned  so  coolly  away,  his  native  pride 
and  obstinacy  were  aroused. 

"  She  shall  speak  to  me  and  do  me  justice,"  he  mut- 
tered. "  She  must  understand  that  I  spoke  unconsciously 
on  that  miserable  moriling,  and  am  not  to  be  blamed.  As 
I  am  a  man,  I  will  speak  boldly  and  secure  recognition." 
But  as  the  little  company  mingled  and  conversed  before 
the  music  commenced,  no  opportunity  offered.  He  de- 
termined to  show  her,  however,  that  he  was  no  country 
boor,  and  with  skill  and  taste  made  himself  agreeable. 

Christine  furtively  watched  him.  She  was  surprised 
to  see  him,  as  the  idea  of  meeting  him  in  society  as  an 
equal  had  scarcely  been  realized  before.  But  when  she 
saw  him  greeting  one  after  another  with  grace  and  ease, 
and  that  all  seemed  to  enjoy  his  conversation,  so  that  a 
little  knot  of  Miss  Winthrop's  most  intelligent  guests  were 
about,  him  at  last,  she  felt  that  it  would  be  no  great  conde- 
sf.<;nsion  on  her  part  to  be  a  little  more  affable.  In  hef 
heart,  tiiough,  she  had  not  forgiven  the  unconscious  woids 
that  had  smitten  to  the  ground  her  ambitious  hopes. 

Then  again,  his  appearance  deeply  inteiested  lier. 
There  was  a  suppressed  excitement  and  power  about  him 


DENNIS'  LOVE  PUT  TO  PRACTICAL  USE. 


as? 


seen  in  the  glow  and  fire  of  his  dark  eyes,  and  felt  in  his 
tones,  that  stirred  her  languid  pulses. 

"  He  is  no  vapid  society-man,"  she  said  to  herself,  and 
her  artist  eye  was  gratified  by  the  changes  in  his  noble 
face. 

"  I^ook  at  Fleet,"  whispered  her  father ;  "  could  you 
believe  he  was  sweeping  the  store  the  other  day?  Well,  if 
we  don't  find  out  his  worth  and  get  what  we  can  from  him, 
the  world  will.  We  ought  to  have  had  him  up  to  sing 
before  this,  but  I  have  been  so  busy  since  your  illness  that 
it  slipped  my  mind." 

Miss  Winthrop  now  led  Christine  to  the  piano,  and  she 
plaj'ed  a  classical  piece  of  music  in  faultless  taste.  Then 
followed  duets,  solos,  quartets,  choruses,  and  instrumen- 
tal pieces,  for  nearly  all  present  were  musical  amateurs. 
Under  the  inspiration  of  this  soul-stirring  art,  coldness  and 
formality  melted  away,  and  with  jest  and  brilliant  repartee 
alternating  with  song,  there  gathered  around  Miss  Win- 
throp's  piano  such  a  group  as  could  never  grace  the  par- 
lors of  Miss  Brown.  Sometimes  they  would  carr^  a  new 
and  difficult  piece  triumphantly  Jjirough  :  again  they  would 
break  down,  with  much  laughter  and  good-natured  rallying. 

Dennis,  as  a  stranger,  held  back  at  first;  but  those  who 
remembered  his  voice  at  the  Tableau  party,  were  clamor- 
ous to  hear  him  again,  and  they  tested  and  tried  his  voice 
during  the  evening  in  many  and  varied  ways.  But  he  held 
his  own,  and  won  greener  laurels  than  ever.  He  did  his 
very  best,  for  he  was  before  one  he  would  rather  please 
than  all  the  world  ;  moreover,  her  presence  seemed  to 
inspire  him  to  do  better  than  when  alone.  Christine  with 
the  others  could  not  help  listening  v/ith  delight  to  his  '  ch 
clear  tenor,  and  Mr.  Ludolph  was  undisguised  <  in  his 
admiration. 

"  I  declare,  Mr.  Fleet,  I  have  been  depriving  myself  of 


?58  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

a  good  deal  of  pleasure.  I  meant  to  have  had  }r)u  up  to 
sing  with  us  before,  but  have  been  under  such  a  press  of 
business  of  late.  But  tlie  first  evening  1  am  disengaged 
you  mast  surely  come." 

Christine  had  noticed  how  quietly  and  almost  indiffer- 
ijntly  Dennis  had  taken  the  many  compliments  showered 
on  him  before,  but  now  when  her  father  spoke,  his  face 
flushed,  and  a  sudden  light  came  into  his  eyes.  Dennis 
had  thought,  "  I  can  then  see  and  speak  to  her."  Every 
now  and  then  she  caught  his  eager  questioning  and  almost 
appealing  glance,  but  he  made  no  advances.  "  He  thinks 
I  am  angry  because  of  his  keen  criticism  of  my  picture. 
For  the  sake  of  my  own  pride,  I  must  not  let  him  think 
that  I  care  so  much  about  his  opinion,"  and  Christine 
resolved  to  let  some  of  the  ice  thaw  that  had  formed 
between  them.  Moreover,  in  spite  of  herself,  when  thrown 
into  his  societ}',  he  greatly  interested  her.  He  seemed  to 
have  just  what  she  did  not."  He  could  meet  her  on  her 
own  ground  in  matters  of  taste,  and  then,  in  contrast  with 
her  cold  negative  life,  he  was  so  earnest  and  positive. 
^*  Perhaps  papa  spoke  for  us  both,"  she  thought,  "  and  I 
have  been  depriving  myself  of  a  pleasure  also,  for  he  cer- 
tainly interests  while  most  men  only  wear)-  me." 

Between  ten  and  eleven,  supper  was  announced ;  not 
the  prodigal  abundance  under  which  the  Brewer's  table 
gioaned,  but  a  daint\'  elegant  little  affair,  which  inspired 
and  promoted  social  feeling,  though  the  "  spirit  of  wine' 
w;is  absent.  The  eye  was  feasted  as  truly  as  the  palate. 
Christine  had  stood  near  Dennis  as  the  last  piece  was 
S'.iiig.  and  he  turned  and  said  in  a  low,  eager  tone: 

"  Mav    I    have   the    pleasure   of    waiting    on    you    at 

Slic  hesitated,  but  his  look  was  so  wistful  that  she 
could  not  well  refuse,  so  with  a  slight  smile  she  bowed 


DENNIS'  LOVE  PUT  TO  PRACTICAL  USE.         259 

assent,  and  placed  the  tips  of  her  little  gloved  hand  on 
his  arm,  which  so  trembled  that  she  looked  inquiringly 
and  curiously  into  his  face.  It  was  veiy  pale,  as  was  ever 
the  case  when  he  felt  deeply.  He  waited  on  her  politely 
biit  silently  at  first.  She  sat  in  an  angle,  somewhat  apart 
from  the  others.  As  he  stood  by  her  side  thinking  how  to 
refer  to  the  morning  in  the  show-room,  she  said : 

"  Mr.  Fleet,  you  are  not  eating  anything,  and  you  look 
as  if  you  had  been  living  on  air,  of  late — very  differently 
from  when  you  so  efficiently  aided  me  in  the  rearrange- 
ment of  the  store.  I  am  delighted  you  keep  up  the  better 
order  of  things." 

Dennis'  answer  was  quite  irrelevant. 

"  Miss  Ludolph,"  he  said  abruptly,  "  I  saw  that  I  gave 
you  pain  that  morning  in  the  show-room.  If  you  only 
knew  how  the  thought  has  pained  me." 

Christine  flushed^  almost  angrily,  but  said  coldly : 

"  Mr.  Fleet,  that  is  a  matter  you  can  never  understand, 
therefore  we  had  better  dismiss  the  subject." 

But  Dennis  had  determined  to  break  the  ice  between 
them  at  any  risk,  so  he  said  firmly  but  respectfully  : 

"  Miss  Ludolph,  I  did  understand  all,  the  moment 
I  saw  your  face  that  day.  I  do  understand  how  you  have 
felt  since,  better  than  you  imagine." 

Ilis  manner  and  words  were  so  assured  and  decided, 
that  she  raised  a  startled  face  to  his,  but  asked  coldly  and 
in  an  indifferent  manner: 

"  What  can  you  know  of  my  feelings  ?  " 

"I  know,"  said  Dennis  in  a  low  tone,  looking  search- 
ingly  into  her  face,  from  which  cool  composure  was  fast 
fading,  "I  know  the  dearest  hope  of  your  heart  was  (o  be 
among  the  first  in  art.  You  staked  that  hope  on  your 
success  in  a  painting  that  required  a  power  that  you  do 
not  possess."     Christine  became  very  pale,  but  from  her 


26o  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

eyes  shone  a  light  that  most  men  would  have  quailed 
before ;  but  Dennis'  love  was  so  true  and  strong,  that  he 
could  wound  her  for  the  sake  of  the  healing  and  life  he 
hoped  to  bring,  and  he  continued — "On  that  morning 
this  cherished  hope  for  the  future  failed  you,  not  because 
of  my  words,  but  because  your  artist  eye  saw  that  my 
words  were  true.     You  have  since  been  unhappy" — 

"  What-  right  have  you,  you  who  were  but  a  few  days 
since — who  are  a  stranger,  what  right  have  you  to  speak 
to  me  thus  ? " 

"  I  know  what  you  would  say.  Miss  Ludolph,"  said 
Dennis,  a  slight  flush  coming  into  his  pale  face.  "  Friends 
may  be  humble  and  yet  true.     But  am  I  not  right .''  " 

"  I  have  no  claim  on  your  friendship,"  said  Christine 
coldly.  "  But  for  the  sake  of  argument,  grant  that  you 
are,  what  follows  ? "  and  she  looked  at  him  more  eagerly 
than  she  knew.  She  felt  that  he  had  read  her  very  soul, 
and  was  deeply  moved,  and  again  the  superstitious  feeling 
crept  over  her,  "  That  young  man  is  in  some  way  connected 
with  my  destiny." 

Dennis  saw  his  power  and  proceeded  rapidly,  for  he 
knew  they  might  be  interrupted  any  moment,  and  so  they 
would  have  been  had  anything  less  interesting  than  eating 
occupied  attention. 

"  I  saw  in  the  picture  what  in  your  eyes  and  mine 
t\-ould  be  a  fatal  defect — the  lack  of  life  and  true  feeling — 
the  lack  of  power  to  live.  I  did  not  know  who  painted  it, 
but  felt  that  any  one  who  could  paint  as  well  as  that,  and 
yet  leave  out  the  soul  as  it  were,  had  not  the  power  to  put 
it  in.  No  artist  of  such  ability  could  willingly  or  igno 
ranllv  have  permitted  such  a  defect." 

Christine's  eyes  sank,  their  fire  faded  out,  and  her  face 
had  ihe  pallor  of  one  listening  to  her  doom.  This  deeper 
feeling  mastered  the  momentary  resentment  against  the 


DENNIS'  LOVE  PUT  TO  PRACTICAL  USE.         261 

hand  that  was  wounding  her,  and  she  forgot  him,  and  all, 
in  her  pain  and  despair. 

In  a  low  earnest  tone  Dennis  continued  : 

"  But  since  I  have  come  to  know  who  the  artist  is, 
since  I  have  studied  the  picture  more  fully,  and  have  taken 
the  liberty  of  some  observation," — Christine  hung  on  his 
lips  breathlessly,  and  Dennis  spoke  slowly,  marking  the 
effect  of  every  word—"  I  have  come  to  the  decided  belief 
that  the  lady  who  painted  that  picture  <ra«  reach  the  sphere 
of  true  and' highest  art." 

The  light  that  stole  into  Christine's  face  under  his  slow, 
emphatic  words  was  like  a  rosy  dawn  in  June ;  and  the 
thought  flashed  through  Dennis'  mind,  "  If  an  earthly  hope 
can  so  light  up  her  face,  what  will  be  the  effect  of  a  heav- 
enly one  ? " 

For  a  moment  she  sat  as  one  entranced,  looking  at  a 
picture  far  off  in  the  future.  His  words  had  been  so  ear- 
nest and  assured  that  they  seemed  reality.  Suddenly  she 
turned  on  him  a  look  as  grateful  and  happy  as  the  former 
one  had  been  full  of  pain  and  anger,  and  said : 

"  Ah,  do  not  deceive  me,  do  not  flatter.  You  cannot 
know  the  sweetness  and  power  of  the  hope  you  are  inspir- 
ing. To  be  disappointed  again,  would  be  death.  If  you 
are  trifling  with  me,  I  will  never  forgive  you,"  she  added  in 
sudden  harshness,  her  brow  darkening. 

"  Nor  would  I  deserve  to  be  forgiven  if  I  deceived  you 
in  a  matter  that  to  you  is  so  sacred." 

"  But  how — how  am  I  to  gain  this  magic  power  to 
make  faces  feel  and  live  on  canvas? " 

"You  must  believe.     You  must  feel  yourself." 

She  looked  at  him  with  darkening  face,  and  then  in  a 
sudden  burst  of  passion  said,  "  I  don't  believe,  I  can't  feel. 
All  this  is  mockery,  after  all." 

"  No  ! "  said  Dennis,  in  the  deep  assured  tone  that  evei 


2f)2  BARRIERS  BURNED  A\VA\. 

calms  and  secures  attention,  "  This  is  not  mockery.  1 
speak  the  words  of  truth  and  soberness.  You  do  not  be- 
lieve, but  that  is  not  the  same  as  cannot.  And  permit  me 
to  contradict  you  when  I  say  you  do  feel.  On  this  subject 
so  near  your  heart  you  feel  most  deep'y — feel  as  I  never 
knew  any  one  before.  This  proves  you  capable  of  feeling 
on  other  and  higher  subjects,  and  what  you  feel,  yoxir 
trained  and  skilful  hand  can  portray.  You  felt  on  the  eve- 
ning of  that  miserable  day,  and  sang  as  I  never  heard  you 
before.  Your  tones  then  would  move  any  heart,  and  my 
tears  fell  with  the  rain  in  s}'mpathy — I  could  not  help  it" 

Her  bosom  rose  and  fell  tumultuously,  and  her  breath 
came  hard  and  quick — 

"O,  if  I  could  believe  you  were  right." 
,     "  I  know  I  am  right,"  he  said  so  decidedly  that  again 
hope  grew  rosy  and  beautiful  in  her  face. 

"  Then  again,"  he  continued  eagerly,  "  see  what  an  ad 
vantage  you  have  over  the  most  of  us.  Your  power  of  imi 
tation  is  wonderful.      You  can  copy  anything  you  see" 

"Good-evening,  Miss  Ludolph.  Where  have  you  beer 
hiding?  I  have  twice  made  a  tour  of  the  supper-room  in 
my  search,"  broke  in  the  voluble  Mr.  Mellen.  Then  he 
gave  Dennis  a  cool  stare,  who  acted  as  if  unconscious  of 
his  presence.  An  expression  of  disgust  flitted  across 
Christine's  face  at  the  interruption,  or  the  person — perhaps 
both,  and  she  was  about  to  shake  him  oiT  that  Dennis 
might  speak  further,  when  Miss  Winthrop  and  others  came 
up,  and  there  was  a  general  movement  back  to  the  parlors. 

"  Why,  Christine,  what  is  the  matter  ? "  asked  her 
friend.  "You  look  as  if  you  had  a  fever.  \Miat  has  'Mr. 
Fleet  been  saying?" 

'•  O.  we  have  had  an  argument  on  my  hobby,  Art,  arifl 
of  course  don"t  agree,  and  so  got  excited  in  debate." 

Miss  Winthrop  glanced  keenly  at  them  and  said  : 


DENNIS'  LOVE  PUT  TO  PRACTICAL  USE.         263 

"  I  would  like  to  have  heard  it,  for  it  was  Greek  meet- 
ing Greek." 

"  To  what  art  or  trade  did  Mr.  Fleet  refer  ?  "  aske  1  Mr. 
Mellen,  with  an  insinuation  that  all  understood. 

"  One  that  you  do  not  undertsand,'  said  Christine 
keenly. 

The  petted  and  spoiled  millionnaire  .flushed  an;jiily  a 
moment,  and  then  said  with  a  bow : 

"  You  are  right,  Miss  Ludolph ;  Mr.  Fleet  is  ac- 
quainted with  one  or  two  arts  that  I  have  never  had  the 
pleasure  of  learning." 

"  He  has  at  least  learned  the  art  of  being  a  gentleman, 
was  the  sharp  retort. 

The  young  man's  face  grew  darker,  and  he  said : 

"  From  the  sweeping  nature  of  your  remarks,  I  perceive 
that  Ml*  Fleet  is  high  in  your  favor." 

'  A  poor  pun  made  in  poorer  taste,"  was  all  the  com 
fort  he  got  from  Christine. 

Dennis  was  naturally  of  a  very  jealous  disposition 
where  his  affections  were  concerned.  His  own  love  took 
such  entire  possession  of  him  that  he  could  not  brook  the 
interference  of  another,  or  sensibly  consider  that  they 'had 
the  same  privilege  to  woo,  and  win  if  possible,  that  he  had. 
This  rich  and  favored  youth  was  especially  distasteful  to 
him,  and  his  presence  awakened  all  his  combativeness, 
which  was  by  no  means  small. 

Mr.  Mellen's  most  inopportune  interruption  and  covert 
.taunts  provoked  him  beyond  endurance.  His  face  was 
fairly  white  with  rage,  and  for  a  moment  he  felt  that  he  could 
stamp  his  rival  out  of  existence.  In  the  low,  concentrated 
voice  of  passion  he  said  : 

"  If  Mr.  Mellen  should  lose  his  property,  as  many  do, 
I  gather  from  Ris  remarks  that  he  would  still  keep  up  his 
idea  of  a  gentleman  on  charity." 


2^4  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

Mr.  Mellen  flushed  to  the  roots  of  his  hair,  his  hands 
clenched.  In  the  flashing  eyes  and  threatening  faces  of 
the  young  men,  those  witnessing  the  scene  foresaw  trouble. 
A  light  hand  fell  on  Dennis'  arm,  and  Miss  Winthrop  said; 

"  Mr.  Fleet,  I  wish  to  show  you  a  picture,  and  ask  yoiu" 
judgment  in  regard  to  it." 

Dennis  understood  the  act,  and  in  a  moment  more  his 
face  was  crimson  with  shame. 

*'  Miss  Winthrop,  you  ought  to  send  me  home  at  once. 
I  told  you  I  was  unfit  for  society.  Somehow  I  am  not 
myself     I  humbly  ask  your  pardon." 

"  So  sincere  a  penitent  shall  receive  absolution  at  once. 
You  were  greatly  provoked.     I  trust  you  for  the  future." 

"You  may,"  was  the  emphatic  answer.  After  that 
pledge  Mr.  Mellen  might  have  struck  him  and  received  no 
more  response  than  from  a  marble  statue. 

Mr.  Mellen  also  took  a  sober  second  thought,  remem- 
bering that  he  was  in  a  lady's  parlor. 

He  walked  away  with  his  ears  stinging,  for  the  flattered 
youth  had  never  had  such  an  experience  before.  The  few 
who  witnessed  the  scene  smiled  significantly,  and  Chris- 
tine-half contemptuously;  but  Miss  Winthrop  soon  made 
all  serene,  and  the  remaining  hours  passed  away  in  music 
and  some  dancing.  Christine  did  not  speak  to  Dennis 
again,  that  is  by  word  of  mouth,  but  she  thought  of  him 
constantly,  and  their  eyes  often  met — on  his  part  that  same 
eager,  questioning  look.  She  ever  turned  hers  at  once 
away.  But  his  words  kept  repeating  themselves  contin- 
Uolly,  especially  his  last  sentence,  when  the  unlucky 
M  r.  Mellen  broke  in  upon  them, — "  You  can  copy  any- 
thing you  see." 

"  How  noble  and  expressive  of  varied  feeling  his  face 
is,"  she  thought,  watching  it  change  under  the  playful  bad 
inage  of  Miss  Winthrop. 


DENNIS'  LOVE  PUT  TO  PRACTICAL  USE.        265 

"  How  I  would  like  to  copy  it.  Well,  you  can — '  You 
can  copy  anything  you  see.' "  Then  like  a  flash  came  a 
suggestion — "  You  can  make  him  love  you,  and  copy  feel- 
ing, passion,  life — from  the  living  face.  Whether  I  can 
believe  or  feel,  myself,  is  very  doubtlul.  This  I  can  do — ■ 
he  himself  said  so.  I  cannot  love,  myself,  I  must  not ;  I 
do  not  wish  to  now,  but  perhaps  I  can  inspire  love  in  him, 
and  then  make  his  face  a  study.  As  to  my  believing,  he 
can  never  know  how  utterly  impossible  his  Faith  is  to  me. 
This  is  my  one  way  out  of  darkness  to  the  glory-crowned 
heights  of  fame." 

Then  conscience  entered  a  mild  protest  against  the 
cruelty  of  the  thing.  "  Nonsense  !  "  she  said  to  herself ; 
"  most  girls  flirt  for  sport,  and  it  is  a  pity  if  I  cannot  with 
such  a  purpose  in  view.  He  will  soon  get  over  a  little 
puncture  in  his  heart  after  I  have  sailed  away  to  riy  bright 
future  beyond  the  sea,  and  perhaps  Susie  will  comfort  him," 
and  she  smiled  at  the  thought.  Dennis  saw  the  smile  and 
was  entranced  by  its  loveliness.  How  little  he  guessed  the 
cause ! 

Having  resolved,  Christine  acted  promptly.  When 
their  eyes  again  met,  she  gave  him  a  slight  smile.  He 
caught  it  instantly  and  looked  bewildered,  as  if  he  could 
not  believe  his  eyes.  Again,  when,  a  little  later,  at  the  ur- 
gent request  of  many,  he  sang  alone  for  the  first  time,  and 
again  moved  his  hearers  deeply  by  the  real  feeling  in  his 
tones,  he  turned  from  the  applause  of  all,  with  that  same 
questioning  look,  to  her.  She  smiled  an  encouragement 
that  she  had  never  given  him  before.  The  warm  blood 
flooded  his  face  instantly.  All  thought  that  it  was  the 
general  choiiis  of  praise.  Christine  knew  that  she  had 
caused  it.  Surprise  and  almost  exultation  came  into  her 
face.  "  I  half  believe  he  loves  me  now,"  she  said.  She 
threw  him  a  few  more  kindly  smiles  from  time  to  time  as 


266  BARRIERS  BURNED   AWAY. 

one  might  some  glittering  things  to  an  eager  child,  and 
every  moment  assured  her  of  her  power. 

"  I  will  try  one  more  test,"  she  said,  and  by  a  little 
f.ffort  Im-ed  to  her  side  the  ofifended  Mr.  Mellea,  and  ap- 
peared much  pleased  by  his  attention.  Then  unmislaka 
bly  the  pain  of  jealousy  was  stamped  on  Dennis'  face,  and 
she  was  satisfied.  Shaking  off  the  perplexed  Mr.  Mellen 
again,  she  went  to  the  recess  of  a  window  to  hide  her  look 
of  exultation. 

"  The  poor  victim  loves  me,  already,"  she  said.  "  The 
mischief  is  done.  I  have  only  to  avail  myself  of  what 
exists  from  no  fault  of  mine,  and  surely  I  ought  to ;  other- 
wise the  passion  of  the  infatuated  youth  will  be  utterly 
wasted,  and  do  nobody  any  good." 

Thus  in  somewhat  a  novel  way  Christine  obtained  a 
new  master  in  painting,  and  poor  Dennis  and  his  love  were 
put  to  use  somewhat  as  a  human  subject  might  be  if  dis- 
sected alive. 


CHAPTER  XXXII. 

THE   TWO   HEIGHTS. 


Dennis  went  home  in  a  strange  tumult  of  hopes  and 
fears,  but  hope  predominated,  for  evidently  she  cared  little 
for  Mr.  Mellen.  "  The  ice  is  broken  at  last,"  he  said.  It 
wa!>,  but  he  was  like  to  fall  through  into  a  very  cold  bath, 
though  he  knew  it  not. 

He  was  far  too  excited  to  sleep,  and  sat  by  his  open 
window  till  the  warm  June  night  grew  pale  with  the  light 
of  coming  day. 

Suddenly  a  bright  thought  struck  him,  a  moment  mor* 


THE  TWO  HEIGHTS.  267 

it  became  an  earnest  purpose.  "  I  think  I  can  paint  some- 
thing, that  may  express  to  her  what  I  dare  not  put  in 
words." 

He  immediately  went  up  into  the  loft  and  prepared  a 
laige  frame,  so  proportioned  that  two  pictures  could  be 
painted  side  by  side,  one  explanatory  and  an  advance 
upon  the  other.  Over  this  he  stretched  his  canvas,  and 
sketched  and  outlined  rapidly  under  the  inspiration  of  his 
happy  thought. 

Christine  came  with  her  father  to  the  store,  as  had  been 
her  former  custom,  and  her  face  had  its  old  expression. 
The  listless,  disappointed  look  was  gone.  She  passed  on, 
not  appearing  to  see  him  while  with  her  father,  and  Dennis' 
heart  sank  again.  "  She  surely  knew  where  to  look  for 
me  if  she  cared  to  look,"  he  said  to  himself.  Soon  after 
he  went  to  the  upper  show-room  to  see  to  the  hanging  of 
a  new  picture. 

"  I  am  so  glad  your  taste,  instead  of  old  Schwartz' 
mathematics,  has  charge  of  this  department  now,"  said 
a  honeyed  voice  at  his  side.     He  was  startled  greatly. 

"What  is  the  matter?  Are  you  nervous,  Mr.  Fleet? 
I  had  no  idea  that  a  lady  could  so  frighten  you." 

He  was  blushing  like  a  girl,  but  said  :  "  I  have  read 
that  something  within,  rather  than  anything  without,  makes 
us  cowards." 

"  Ah,  then  you  confess  to  a  guilty  conscience  ? "  she  re- 
plied, with  a  twinkle  in  her  eye. 

"  I  do  not  think  I  shall  confess  at  all  till  I  .lave  a 
merciful  confessor,"  said  Dennis,  conscious  of  a  deeper 
meaning  than  his  light  words  might  convey. 

*'  *  Mercy  is  a  qualitj'  not  strained,'  therefore  unfit  foi 
my  use.  I'll  none  of  it,  but  for  each  offence  impose  un« 
limited  penance." 

" But  suppose  one  must  sin?" 


2  68  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  They  must  take  the  consequences  then.  Even  youf 
humane  religion  teaches  that,"  and  with  this  parting  arrow 
she  vanished,  leaving  him  too  excited  to  hang  his  picture 
straight. 

It  all  seemed  a  bewildering  dream.  Being  so  thor- 
oughly taken  by  surprise  and  off  his  guard,  he  had  said  far 
more  than  he  meant.  But  had  she  understood  him  ? 
Yes,  better  than  he  had  himself,  and  laughed  at  his 
answers  with  their  covert  meanings. 

She  spent  the  next  two  days  in  sketching  and  outlining 
his  various  expressions  as  far  as  possible  from  memory. 
She  would  learn  to  catch  those  evanescent  lines,  that 
something  which  makes  the  human  face  eloquent,  though 
the  lips  are  silent. 

Dennis  was  in  a  maze,  but  he  repeated  to  himself 
jubilantly  again,  "The  ice  is  broken."  That  evening  at 
Mr,  Bruder's  he  asked  for  studies  in  ice. 

*'  Vy  dat  is  out  of  season,"  said  Mr.  Bruder  with  a 
laugh. 

"  No,  now  is  just  the  time.  It  is  a  nice  cool  subject 
for  these  hot  nights.  Please  oblige  me :  for  certain  rea- 
sons I  wish  to  be  able  to  paint  ice  perfectly." 

Arctic  scenery  was  Mr.  Bruder's  forte,  on  which  he 
specially  prided  himself.  He  was  too  much  of  a  gentle- 
man to  ask  questions,  and  was  delighted  to  find  the  old 
zest  returning  in  his  pupil.  They  were  soon  constructing 
bergs,  caves,  and  grottos  of  cold  blue  ice.  Night  after 
night  they  worked  at  this  study.  Dennis'  whole  soul 
seemed  bent  on  the  formation  of  ice.  After  a  montli  of 
labor  Mr.   Bruder  said: 

"  I  hojie  you  vill  get  over  dis  by  fall,  or  ve  all  freeze 
to  death." 

''  One  of  these  days  I  shall  explain,"  said  Dennis, 
Bmiling. 


THE  TWO  HEIGHTS.  269 

The  evening  of  the  second  day  after  the  little  ren- 
counter in  the  show-room,  Mr.  Ludolph  sat  enjoying  his 
cigar,  and  Christine  was  at  the  piano  playing  a  difficult 
piece  of  music. 

"  Come,  father,"  she  said,  "  here  is  a  fine  thing  just 
from  Germany.  There  is  a  splendid  tenor  solo  :n  it,  and 
I  want  you  to  sing  it  for  me." 

"  Pshaw  ! "  said  her  father,  "  why  did  I  not  think  of  it 
before  ? "  and  he  rang  the  bell.  "  Here,  Brandt,  go  down 
to  the  store,  and  if  Mr.  Fleet  is  there,  ask  him  if  he  will 
come  up  to  my  rooms  for  a  little  while." 

Brandt  met  Dennis  on  the  store  steps  starting  for  his 
painting  lesson,  but  led  him  a  willing  captive  to  uncon- 
sciously give  Christine  instruction. 

She,  whose  strategy  brought  it  all  about,  smiled  at  her 
success.  It  was  not  her  father's  tenor  she  wanted,  but 
Dennis'  face ;  and  her  father  should  unknowingly  work 
her  will.  The  girl  had  learned  so  much  from  the  wily 
man  of  the  world  that  she  was  becoming  his  master. 

Dennis  came  and  entered  with  a  thrill  of  delight  .what 
was  to  him  enchanted  ground.  Mr.  Ludolph  was  affable, 
Christine  kind,  but  looked  more  than  she  said. 

Dennis  sang  the  solo,  after  one  or  two  efforts,  correctly. 
Then  Mr.  Ludolph  brought  out  a  piece  of  music  that  he 
wished  to  try  ;  Christine  found  others,  and  before  they 
knew  it  the  evening  had  passed.  Quite  a  knot  of  delighted 
listeners  gathered  in  the  street  opposite.  This  Christine 
pointed  out  to  her  father  with  evident  annoyance. 

"  Well,  my  dear,"  he  said,  "  hotel  life  in  a  crowded  city 
renders  escape  from  such  things  impossible." 

But  a  purpose  was  growing  in  her  mind  of  which  she 
spoke  soon  after.  Throughout  the  evening  she  had  studied 
Dennis'  face  all  she  could  without  attracting  notice,  and 
the  thought  grew  upon  her  that  at  last  she  had  found  a 
path  to  the  success  she  so  craved. 


270  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  You  seem  to  have  gone  to  work  with  all  your  old  zest," 
said  her  father,  as  he  canfe  out  of  his  room  the  next  morn- 
ing and  found  Christine  at  her  easel. 

"  I  shall  try  it  again,"  she  said  briefly. 

"That  is  right,"  said  he.  "The  idea  of  being  daui.ted 
by  one  partial  failure !  I  predict  for  you  such  success  as 
will  satisfy  even  your  fastidious  taste." 

"  We  will  see,"  she  said.  "  I  hope  too."  But  she  would 
not  have  her  father  know  on  what  grounds.  He  might 
regard  the  experiment  as  a  dangerous  one  for  herself  as 
well  as  Dennis,  and  she  decided  to  keep  her  plan  entirely 
secret. 

She  now  came  to  the  store  daily,  and  rarely  went  away 
without  giving  Dennis  a  smile  or  word  of  recognition. 
But  he  noticed  that  she  ever  did  this  in  a  casual  manner, 
and  in  a  way  that  would  not  attract  attention.  He  also 
took  the  hint,  and  never  was  obtrusive  or  demonstrative, 
.])Ut  it  was  harder  work  for  his  frank  open  nature.  When 
unobserved,  his  glances  grew  more  ardent  day  by  day. 
So  far  from  checking  these,  she  encouraged  them,  but, 
when  in  any  way  he  sought  to  put  his  feelings  in  words, 
she  changed  the  subject  instantly  and  decidedly.  This 
puzzled  him,  for  he  could  not  understand  that  looks  could 
be  painted,  but  not  words.  The  latter  were  of  no  use  to 
her.  But  she  led  him  on  skilfully,  and,  from  the  unbounded 
power  his  love  gave  her,  played  upon  his  feelings  as  adroitly 
as  she  touched  her  grand  piano. 

Soon  after  the  company  at  Miss  Winthrop's,  she  said 
to  him  : 

"You  received  several  invitations  the  other  evening, 
difl  you  not? "' 

"  Yes." 

"  Accept  them.     Go  into  society  ;  it  will  do  you  good." 

Thus  he  soon  found  himself  involved  in  a  round  of  so- 


THE  TWO  HEIGHTS.  27* 

ciables,  musicales,  and  now  and  then  a  large  party.  Chris- 
tine was  usually  present,  radiant,  brilliant,  the  cynosure 
of  all  eyes,  but  ever  coolly  self-possessed.  At  hrst  she 
would  greet  him  with  distant  politeness,  or  pretend  not  to 
see  him  at  all,  but  before  the  evening  was  over  would 
manage  to  give  him  a  half  hour  in  which  she  would  be 
kind  and  even  gentle  at  times,  but  very  observant.  Then 
for  the  rest  of  the  evening  he  would  find  no  chance  to  ap- 
proach. It  appeared  that  she  was  deeply  interested  in 
him,  enjoyed  his  society,  and  was  even  becoming  attached, 
but  for  some  reason  she  determined  that  no  one  should 
notice  this,  and  that  matters  should  only  go  so  far.  Poor 
Dennis  could  not  know  that  he  was  only  her  unconscious 
instructor  in  painting,  paid  solely  in  the  coin  of  false  smiles 
and  delusive  hopes.  At  times,  though,  she  would  torture 
him  dreadfully.  Selecting  one  of  her  many  admirers,  she 
would  seem  to  smile  upon  his  suit,  and  poor  Dennis  would 
writhe  in  all  the  agonies  of  jealousy,  for  he  was  very 
human",  and  had  all  the  normal  feeling  of  a  strong  man. 
She  would  then  watch  his  face  grow  pale  and  his  manner 
restless,  as  quietly  and  critically  as  an  entomologist  the 
struggles  of  an  insect  beneath  his  microscope.  Again,  she 
would  come  to  him  all  grace  and  sweetness,  and  his  fine 
face  would  light  up  with  hope  and  pleasure.  She  would 
say  sweet  honeyed  nothings,  but  study  him  just  as  coolly 
in  another  aspect. 

Thus  she  kept  him  hot  and  cold  by  turns,  now  lifting 
him  to  the  pinnacle  of  hope,  again  casting  him  down  into  the 
valley  of  fear  and  doubt.  What  she  wanted  of  him  was 
just  what  she  had  not — feeling,  intense  varied,  feeling,  so 
that,  while  she  remained  ice,  she  could  paint  as  if  she  felt, 
and  with  a  gifted  woman's  tact,  and  with  the  power  of  one 
loved  almost  to  idolatry,  she  caused  every  chord  of  his 
soul,  now  in  happy  harmony,  now  in  painful   discord,  to 


«72 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


vibrate  under  her  skilful  touch.  But  such  a  life  was 
verj-  wearing,  and  he  was  failing  under  it.  Moreo\'er  he 
was  robbing  himself  of  sleep  night  and  morning  that  he 
might  work  on  his  picture  in  the  loft  of  the  store,  fur 
which  he  asked  of  pooi  Mr.  Bruder  nothing  but-ice. 

Mrs.  Bruder  worried  over  him  continually. 

"  You  vork  too  hart.  Vat  shall  ve  do  for  you  ?  Oh, 
my  fren,  if  you  love  us  do  not  vork  so  hart,"  she  would 
often  say.  But  Dennis  would  only  smile  and  turn  to  her 
husband  in  his  insatiable  demand  for  painted  ice.  'At 
last  Mr.  Bruder  said :  "  Mr.  Fleet,  you  can  paint  ice,  as  far 
as  I  see,  as  veil  as  myself." 

Then  Dennis  turned  short  around  and  said :  "  Now  I 
want  warm,  rosy  light  and  foliage  ;  give  me  studies  in 
these." 

"  By  de  hammer  of  Thor,  but  you  go  to  extremes." 

"  You  shall  know  all  some  day,"  said  Dennis,  entering 
on  his  new  tasks  with  increasing  eagerness. 

But  day  by  day  he  grew  thinner  and  paler.  Even 
Christine's  heart  sometimes  relented,  for,  absorbed  as  she 
was  in  her  own  work  and  interests,  she  could  not  help 
noticing  how  sadly  he  differed  from  the  vigorous  youth 
who  lifted  the  hea\7  pictures  for  her  but  a  few  short  weeks 
ago.  But  she  quieted  herself  by  the  thought  that  he,  was 
a  better  artistic  subject,  and  that  he  would  mend  again 
when  the  cool  weather  came. 

"  Where  shall  we  go  for  the  two  hot  months  ? "  asked 
her  father  the  morning  after  the  Fourth. 

"  I  have  a  plan  to  propose,"  replied  Christine.  "  Sup- 
])rise  we  go  to  housekeeping.' 

"  What !  "  said  her  father,  dropping  his  knife  and  fcik, 
and  looking  at  her  in  astonrshment.  "Go  to  all  the  ex- 
pense of  furnishing  a  house,  when  ,ve  do  not  expect  to 
stay  here  much  more  than  a  j^ear?  We  ^bouW  bar'il^  be 
settled  before  we  left  it." 


THE  TWO  HEIGHTS. 


273 


"  Listen  to  me  patiently  till  I  am  through,  and  then  I 
will  abide  by  your  decision.  But  I  think  you  will  give  me 
credit  for  having  a  slight  turn  for  business  as  well  as  art. 
You  remember  Mr.  Jones'  beautiful  house  on  the  north 
side,  do  you  not  ?  It  stands  on St.,  well  back,  sur- 
rounded by  a  lawn  and  flowers.  There  is  only  one  other 
house  on  the  block.  Well,  Mr.  Jones  is  embarrassed, 
and  his  house  is  for  sale.  From  inquiry  I  am  satisfied  that 
a  cash  offer  would  obtain  the  property  cheaply.  The  fur- 
niture is  good,  and  much  of  it  elegant.  What  we  do  not 
want — what  will  not  accord  with  a  tasteful  refurnishing, 
can  be  sent  to  an  auction-room.  At  comparatively  slight 
expense,  if  you  can  spare  Mr,  Fleet  to  help  me  during  the 
time  when  business  is  dull,  I  can  make  the  house  such  a 
gem  of  artistic  elegance  that  it  will  be  noted  throughout 
the  city,  and  next  Fall  some  rich  snob,  seeking  to  vault 
suddenly  into  social  position,  will  give  just  what  you  are 
pleased  to  ask.  In  the  meantime  we  have  a  retired  and 
delightful  home. 

"  Moreover,  father,"  she  continued,  touching  him  on 
his  weak  side,  "  it  will  be  a  good  preparation  for  the  more 
difficult  and  important  work  of  the  same  kind  awaiting  me 
in  my  own  land." 

"Humph!"  said  Mr.  Ludolph  meditatively,  "there 
is  more  method  in  your  madness  than  I  imagined.  I 
will  think  of  it,  for  it  is  too  important  a  step  to  be  taken 
hastily." 

Mr.  Ludolph  did  think  of  it,  and,  after  attending  to 
pressing  matters  in  the  store,  went  over  to  see  the  property. 
A  few  days  afterward  he  came  up  to  dinner  and  threw  the 
deed  for  it  into  his  daughter's  lap.  She  glanced  it  over, 
and  her  eyes  grew  luminous  with  delight  and  triumph. 

"  See  how  comfortable  and  happy  I  will  make  you  in 
return  for  this  kindness,"  she  said. 


a74  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  Oh,  come,"  replied  her  fkther,  laughing,  "  that  is  not 
the  point.  This  is  a  speculation,  and  your  business  repu- 
tation is  at  stake." 

"  I  will  abide  the  test,'"  she  answered,  with  a  significant 
nod. 

Christine  wished  the  change  for  several  reasons. 
There  was  a  room  in  the  house  that  would  just  suit  her 
as  a  studio.  She  detested  the  publicity  of  a  hotel.  The 
furnishing  of  an  elegant  house  was  a  form  of  activity  most 
pleasing  to  her  energetic  nature,  and  she  felt  a  very  strong 
wish  to  try  her  skill  in  varied  effect  before  her  grand  effort 
in  the  Ludolph  Hall  of  the  future. 

But  in  addition  to  these  motives  was  another,  of  which 
she  did  speak  to  her  father.  In  the  privacy  of  her  own 
home  she  could  pursue  that  peculiar  phase  of  art  study  in 
which  she  was  absorbed.  Her  life  had  now  become  a 
most  exciting  one.  She  ever  seemed  on  the  point  of  ob- 
taining the  power  of  portraying  the  eloquence  of  passion, 
feeling,  but  there  was  a  subtle  something  that  still  eluded  her. 
She  saw  it  daily,  and  yet  could  not  reproduce  it.  She 
seemed  to  get  the  features  right,  and  yet  they  were  dead,  or 
else  the  emotion  was  so  exaggerated  as  to  suggest  weak 
sentimentality,  and  this  of  all  things  disgusted  her.  Every 
day  that  she  studied  the  expressive  face  of  Dennis  Fleet, 
the  mysterious  power  seemed  nearer  her  grasp.  Her 
effort  was  now  gaining  all  the  excitement  of  a  chase.  She 
saw  before  her  just  what  she  wanted,  and  't  seemed  that 
she  had  only  to  grasp  her  pencil  or  brush,  and  place  the 
fleeting  expressions  where  they  might  always  appeal  to 
the  sympathy  of  the  beholder.  Nearly  all  her  studies  now 
were  the  human  face  and  form,  mainly  those  of  ladies,  to 
disarm  suspicion.  Of  course  she  took  no  distinct  likeness 
of  Dennis.  She  sought  only  to  paint  ,what  his  face  ex- 
pressed.    At  times  she  seemed  about  to  succeed,  and  ex- 


THE  TWO  HEIGHTS. 


275 


citement  brought  color  to  her  cheek  and  fire  to  her  eye  that 
made  her  dazzHngly  beautiful  to  poor  Dennis.  Then  she 
would  smile  upon  him  in  such  a  bewitching,  encouraging, 
way,  that  it  was  little  wonder  his  face  lighted  up  with  all 
{he  g\ory  of  hope. 

If  once  more  she  could  have  him  about  her  as  when  re- 
arranging tlie  store,  and,  without  the  restraint  of  curious 
eyes,  could  play  upon  his  heart,  then  pass  at  once  to  her 
easel  with  the  vivid  impression  of  what  she  saw,  she  might 
catch  the  coveted  power,  and  become  able  to  portray,  as  if 
she  felt,  that  which  is  the  inspiration  of  all  the  highest  forms 
of  art — feeling. 

That  evening,  Dennis,  at  Mr.  Ludolph's  request,  came 
to  the  hotel  to  try  some  new  music.  During  the  even- 
ing Mr.  Ludolph  was  called  out  for  a  little  time.  Availing 
himself  of  the  opportunity,  Dennis  said  : 

"  You  seem  to  be  working  with  all  your  old  zest  and 
hope." 

"  Yes,"  said  she,  "  with  greater  hope  than  ever  before." 

"  Won't  you  show  me  something  that  you  are  doing  ? " 

"No,  not  yet.  I  am  determined  that  when  you  see 
work  of  mine  again,  the  fatal  defect  which  you  pointed 
out  shall  be  absent." 

His  eyes  and  face  became  eloquent  with  the  hope 
she  inspired.  Was  her  heart,  awakening  from  its  long 
winter  of  doubt  and  indifference,  teaching  her  to  paint  ? 
Had  she  recognized  the  truth  of  his  assurance  that  she 
must  feel,  and  then  she  could  portray  feeling  ;  and  had  she 
read  in^  his  face  and  manner  that  which  had  created  a  kin- 
dred impulse  in  her  heart  ?  He  was  about  to  speak,  the 
ice  of  his  reserve  and  prudence  fast  melting  under  what 
seemed  good  evidence  that  her  smiles  and  kindness  might 
be  interpreted  in  accordance  with  his  longings.  She  sav« 
and  anticipated. 


»70  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  With  all  your  cleverness,  Mr.  Fleet,  I  may  prove  you 
at  fault,  and  become  able  to  portray  what  I  do  not  feel 
•  or  believe." 

"  You  mean  to  say  that  you  work  from  your  old  stand- 
point merely  ?  "  asked  Dennis,  feeling  as  if  a  sunny  sky  had 
suddenly  darkened. 

"  I  do  not  say  that  at  all,  but  that  I  do  not  work  from 
yours." 

"  And  yet  you  hope  to  succeed  ? " 

"  I  think  I  am  succeeding." 

Perplexity  and  disappointment  were  plainly  written 
on  his  face.  She,  with  a  merry  and  half-malicious  laugh, 
turned  to  the  piano,  and  sang : 

From  Mount  Olympus'  snowy  height 
The  Gods  look  down  on  human  life : 
Beneath  contending  armies  fight ; 
All  undisturbed  they  watch  the  strife. 

Dennis  looked  at  her  earnestly,  and  after  a  moment 
said :  "  Will  you  please  play  that  accompaniment  again  ?  " 
She  complied,  and  he  sang : 

Your  Mount  Olympus'  icy  peak 

Is  barren  waste,  by  cold  winds  swept : 

Another  height  I  gladly  see 

Where  God  o'er  human  sorrow  wept. 

She  turned  a  startled  and  almost  wistful  face  to  him, 
for  he  had  given  a  very  unexpected  answer  to  her  cold, 
selfish  philosophy,   which   was  so  apt  and  sudden  as  to 

seem  almost  inspired. 

"  Do  you  refer  to  Christ's  weeping  over  Jerusalem  ?  " 
sli8  a'^ked. 

"  Yes." 

She  sat  for  a  little  time  silent  and  thoughtful,  aiid 
Dennis  watched  her  keenly.  Suddenly  her  brow  darkened, 
and  she  said  hitterlv  : 


BEGUILED. 


277 


"  Delusion  !  If  he  had  been  a  God  he  would  net  have 
idly  wept  over  sorrow.     He  would  have  banished  it." 

Dennis  was  about  to  reply  eagerly,  when  Mr.  Ludulph 
enteied,  and  music  was  resumed.  But  it  was  evident  that 
]  )eanis'  lines  had  disturbed  the  fair  skeptic's  equanimity. 


CHAPTER   XXXni. 

BEGUILED. 


Dennis  returned  to  his  room  greatly  perplexed.  There 
was  something  in  Christine's  actions  which  he  could  not 
understand.  From  the  time  of  their  first  conversation 
at  Miss  Wirfthrop's,  she  had  evidently  felt  and  acted  differ- 
ently. If  her  heart  remained  cold  and  untouched,  if  as 
yet  neither  faith  nor  love  had  any  existence,  what  was 
the  inspiring  motive  ?  Why  should  deep  discouragement 
change  suddenly  to  assured  hope  ? 

Then  again  her  manner  was  equally  inexplicable. 
From  that  same  evening  she  gave  him  more  encouragement 
than  he  had  even  hoped  to  receive  for  months,  but  yet  he 
made  no  progress.  She  seemed  to  enjoy  meeting  him,  and 
constantly  found  opportunity  to  do  so.  Her  eyes  were 
continually  seeking  his  face,  but  there  was  something  in 
her  manner  in  this  respect  that  pu4feled  him  more  than  any- 
thing else.  She  often  seemed  looking  at  his  face,  rather 
than  at  him.  At  first  Christine  had  been  furtive  and 
careful  in  her  observations,  but  as  the  habit  grew  upon 
her,  and  her  interest  increased,  she  would  sometimes  gaze 
so  steadily  that  ooor  Dennis  was  deeply  embarr.vssed. 
Becoming  conscious  of  this,  she  would  herseli  cnlo> 
slightly,  and  be  mrre  careful  for  a  time. 


275  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY, 

In  her  eagerness  for  success,  Christine  did  not  realize 
how  dangerous  an  experiment  she  was  trying.  She  could 
not  look  upon  such  a  face  as  Dennis  Fleet's,  eloquent 
with  that  which  should  never  fail  to  touch  a  woman's 
heart  with  sympathy,  and  then  forget  it  when  she  chose. 
Moreover,  though  she  knew  it  not,  in  addition  to  her  in- 
terest in  him  as  an  art  study,  h's  strong  positive  nature 
affected  her  cool  negative  one  most  pleasantly.  His  ear- 
nest manifested  feeling  fell  like  sunlight  on  a  heart  be- 
numbed with  cold. 

Thus,  under  the  stimulus  of  his  presence,  she  found 
that  she  could  paint  a  sketch  td%iuch  better  purpose  than 
when  alone.  This  knowledge  made  her  rejoice  in  secret 
over  the  opportunity  she  could  now  have,  as  Dennis  again 
assisted  her  in  hanging  pictures,  and  affixing  to  the  walls 
ornaments  of  various  kinds.  ' 

Coming  to  him  one  morning  in  the  store,  she  said  • 

"  I  am  going  to  ask  a  favor  of  you  again." 

Dennis  looked  as  if  she  were  conferring  the  greatest  of 
favors.     His  face  always  lighted  up  when  she  spoke  to  him, 

"  It  is  very  kind  of  you  to  ask  so  pleasantly  for  what 
you  can  command,"  he  said. 

"To  something  of  the  same  effect  you  answered 
before,  and  the  result  was  the  rather  disagreeable  experi- 
ence, I  fear,  at  Miss  Brown's." 

Dennis'  brow  contracted  a  little,  but  he  said  heroi- 
cally, "  I  will — yes  I  will  go  to  Miss  Brown's  again  if  you 
wish  it." 

"How  self  sacrificing  you  are,"  she  replied  with  a  half 
mischievous  smile. 

"  Not  as  much  so  as  you  imagine,"  he  answered,  flush- 
ing slightly. 

"  V\'ell,  set  your  mind  at  rest  on  that  score.     Though 
not  ven-  merciful,  as  you  know,  I  would  put  no  poor  soul 


BEGUILED. 


279 


thioiigh  that  ordeal  again.  In  this  case  you  will  only 
have  to  encounter  one  of  the  tormentors  you  met  on  that 
occasion,  and  I  will  tr}-  to  vouch  for  her  better  behavior. 
Then  she  added  seriously,  "  I  hope  you  will  not  think 
the  task  beneath  you.  You  do  not  seem  to  have  much 
of  the  foolish  pride  that  stands  in  the  way  of  so  many 
Americans,  and  then" — looking  at  him  with  a  pleading 
face — "I  have  so  set  my  heart  upon  it,  and  it  would  be 
such  a  disappointment  if  you  were  unwilling." 

Dennis  felt  ready  to  stoop  down  and  black  her  boots 
in  the  street  had  she  asked  him,  and  said  : 

"  You  need  waste  no  more  ammunition  on  one  ready  to 
surrender  at  discretion." 

"  Very  well ;  then  I  shall  treat  you  with  all  the  rigors 
of  a  prisoner  of  war.  I  shall  carry  you  away  captive  to  my 
new  castle  on  the  north  side,  and  put  you  at  your  old  me- 
nial tasks  of  hanging  pictures  and  decoration  in  general. 
As  Eastern  sovereigns  built  their  palaces  and  adorned 
their  cities  by  the  labors  of  those  whom  the  fortunes  of  war 
threw  into  their  hands,  so  your  skill  and  taste  shall  be  use- 
ful to  me,  and  I,  your  head  task-mistress,"  she  added  with 
her  insinuating  smile,  "  will  be  ever  present  to  see  that  there 
is  no  idling,  nothing  but  monotonous  toil.  Had  you  not 
better  have  stood  longer  on  the  defensive  ?  " 

Dennis  held  out  his  hands  in  mock  humility  and  said  : 
"  I  am  ready  for  my  chains.  You  shall  see  with  what  fo*-- 
titude  I  endure  my  captivity." 

"  It  is  well  that  you  should  show  it  somewhere,  for  you 
liave  not  in  your  resistance.  But  I  parole  you  on  your 
honor  to  report  at  such  times  as  I  shall  indicate  and  papa 
can  spare  you." 

And  with  a  smile  and  a  lingering  look  that  seemed,  as 
before,  directed  to  his  face  rather  than  himself,  she  passed 
out 


eSo  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

That  peculiar  look  often  puzzled  him,  and  at  times 
he  would  go  to  a  glass  and  see  if  there  was  anything  wrong 
or  unusual  in  his  appearance.  But  now  his  hopes  rose 
higher  than  ever.  She  had  been  very  gracious,  certainly, 
and  invited  intimate  companionship.  Dennis  felt  that  she 
must  have  read  his  feelings  in  his  face  and  manner,  and,  to 
his  ingenuous  nature,  any  encouragement  seemed  to  prom- 
ise all  he  hoped. 

For  a  week  after  this  he  scarcely  saw  her,  for  she  was 
very  busy  making  preliminary  arrangements  for  the  occupa- 
tion of  her  new  home.  But  one  afternoon  she  suddenly 
appeared,  and  said  with  affected  severity : 

"  Report  to-morrow  at  nine  a.  m." 

Dennis  bowed  humbly.  She  gave  him  a  pleasant  smile 
over  her  shoulder,  and  passed  away  as  quickly  -as  she 
came.  It  seemed  like  a  vision  to  him,  and  only  a  trace  of 
her  favorite  perfume  (which  indeed  ever  seemed  more  an 
atmosphere  than  a  perfume)  remained  as  evidence  that 
she  had  been  there. 

At  five  minutes  before  the  time  on  the  following  day 
he  appeared  at  the  new  Ludolph  mansion.  From  an  open 
window  Christine  beckoned  him  to  enter,  and  welcomed 
him  with  characteristic  words  : 

"  In  view  of  your  foolish  surrender  to  my  power,  remem- 
ber that  you  have  no  rights  that  I  am  bound  to  respect." 

"  I  throw  myself  on  your  mercy." 

"  I  have  already  told  you  that  I  do  not  possess  that 
trait ;   so  prepare  for  the  worst." 

She  was  dressed  in  some  light  summer  fabric,  and  het 
rounded  arms  and  neck  were  partially  bare.  She  looked 
so  white  and  cool,  so  self-possessed,  and,  with  all  her  smiles, 
so  devoid  of  warm  human  feeling,  that  Dennis  felt  a  5.ud- 
den  chill  at  heart.  The  ancient  fable  of  the  sirens  occurred 
to'nim.     Misfht   she  not  be   luring   him  on  to  his  own  de- 


BEGUILED.  281 

structi'on  ?  At  times  he  almost  hoped  that  she  loved  him ; 
again,  something  in  her  manner  caused  him  to  doubt  every- 
thing. But,  unlike  Ulysses  and  his  crew,  there  were  no 
friendly  hands  to  bind  and  restrain,  or  put  wax  in  his  ears, 
an  i  soon  the  music  of  her  voice,  the  strong  enchantment 
of  the  love  she  had  inspired,  banished  all  thought  of  pru- 
dence. His  passion  was  now  becoming  a  species  of  intox- 
ication a  continued  and  feverish  excitement,  and  its  influ- 
ence was  unhappy  on  mind  and  body.  There  was  no  rest, 
peace  or  assurance  in  it,  and  the  uncertainty,  the  tantalizing 
inability  to  obtain  a  defiiite  satisfying  word,  and  j-et  the 
apparent  nearness  of  the  prize,  wore  upon  him.  Some- 
times, when  late  at  night  he  sat  brooding  over  his  last  in- 
terview, weighing  with  the  nice  scales  of  a  lover's  anxiety 
her  every  look  and  even  accent,  his  own  haggard  face 
would  startle  him. 

Then  again  her  influence  morally  was  not  good,  and 
his  interest  declined  in  everything  save  what  was  con- 
nected with  her. 

Conscience  at  times  told  him  that  he  was  more  bent 
on  gaining  her  love  for  himself,  than  in  winning  it  for  God. 
He  satisfied  himself  by  trying  to  reason  that  when  he  had 
won  her  affection  his  power  for  good  would  be  greater,  and 
thus,  while  he  ever  sought  to  look  and  suggest  his  own  love 
in  nameless  little  ways,  he  made  less  and  less  effort  to  remind 
her  of  a  better  love  than  even  his.  Moreover  she  never 
encouraged  anything  approaching  religi'ous  conversation, 
sometimes  even  repelling  it  decidedly,  and  so,  though  he 
would  scarcely  acknowledge  it,  the  traitorous  fear  sprang 
up,  that  in  speaking  of  God's  love  he  might  mar  his 
chances  of  speaking  of  his  own. 

In  the  retirement  of  his  own  room,  his  reveries  grew 
longer  and  his  prayers  shorter  and  less  inspired  by  faith 
and  earnestness.     At  the  mission-school,- Susie  Winthrop 


282  BARRIERS  r.URXED  AWAY. 

noticed  with  regret  that  the  lesson  was  'often  given  in  a 
listless,  preoccupied  manner  ;  and  even  the  little  boys  them- 
selves missed  something  in  the  teacher  once  so  interesting 
and  animated.  From  witnessing  his  manner  when  with 
Christine,  Miss  Winthrop  had  more  than  suspected  his 
secret  for  some  time,  and  she  felt  at  first  a  genuine  sym- 
pathy for  him,  believing  his  love  to  be  hopeless.  From 
the  first  she  had  found  Dennis  very  fascinating,  but  when 
she  read  his  secret  in  his  ardent  glances  to  vard  Christine, 
she  became  conscious  that  her  interest  was  rather  greater 
than  passing  acquaintance  warranted,  and  like  the  good 
sensible  girl  that  she  was,  fought  to  the  death  the  incipi- 
ent fancy.  At  first  she  felt  that  he  ought  to  know  that 
Christine  was  pledged  to  a  future  that  would  render  his 
love  vain.  But  her  own  feelings  made  her  so  exceedingly 
sensitive,  that  it  was  impossible  to  attempt  so  difficult  and 
delicate  a  task.  Then  as  Christine  seemed  to  smile  upon 
him,  she  said  to  herself — "  After  all,  what  is  their  plan,  but 
a  plan,  and  to  me  a  very  chimerical  one.  Perhaps  Mr. 
Fleet  can  give  Christi'^e  a  far  better  chance  of  happiness 
than  her  father's  ambition.  And  after  all,  these  are  mat- 
ters in  which  no  third  party  can  interfere."  So  while  re- 
maining as  cordial  as  ever,  she  prudently  managed  to  see 
very  little  of  Dennis. 

As  we  have  seen,  under  Christine's  merry  and  half-ban- 
tering words  (a  st}'le  of  conversation  often  assumed 
with  him),  even  the  thought  of  caution  vanished.  She  led 
him  over  the  moderately  large  and  partially-furnished 
house.  There  were  women  cleaning,  and  mechanic?  at 
work  on  some  of  the  rooms.  As  they  passed  along  she 
explained  the  nature  of  the  decorations  she  wished.  They 
consisted  largely  in  rich  carvings  in  wood,  and  unique 
Qaraes. 

"  I  wish  you  to  help  me  design  these,  and  see  that  thej 


BEGUILED.  283 

are  properly  put  up,  and  to  superintend  the  fresco-paint- 
ers, and  mechanics  in  general.  Indeed,  I  think  you  are 
more  truly  my  prime-minister  than  captive." 

"  Not  less  your  captive,"  said  Dennis  with  a  flush. 

She  gave  him  a  bewildering  smile  and  then  studied  its 
effect  upon  him.  He  was  in  Elysium,  and  his  eyes  glowed 
with  delight  at  her  presence  and  the  prospect  before  him. 
At  last  she  led  him  into  two  large  apartments  on  the  sec- 
ond floor  that  opened  into  each  other,  and  said : 

"  These  are  my  rooms  ;  that  yonder  is  my  studio,"  as 
was  evident  from  the  large  easel  with  canvas  prepared 
upon  it. 

They  at  once  had  to  Dennis  all  the  sacredness  of  a 
shrine. 

"I  intend  to  make  these  rooms  like  two  beautiful 
pictures,"  said  Christine,  "  and  here  shall  be  the  chief 
display  of  your  taste." 

Dennis  could  scarcely  believe  his  ears,  or  realize  that 
the  cold,  beautiful  girl  who  a  few  short  months  ago  did  not 
notice  him  now  voluntarily  gave  him  such  opportunities 
to  urge  his  suit.  The  success  that  a  man  most  covets 
seemed  assured,  and  his  soul  was  intoxicated  with  delight. 
He  said  : 

"  You  intimated  that  my  tasks  might  be  menial,  but  I 
feel  as  I  imagine  a  Greek  artist  must,  when  asked  to 
decorate  the  temple  of  a  goddess." 

"  I  think  I  told  you  once  before  that  your  imagination 
overshadowed  your  other  faculties." 

Her  words  recalled  the  painted  girl  whom  she  by 
a  strange  coincidence  so  strongly  resembled.  To  his 
astonishment  he  saw  the  same  striking  likeness  again. 
Christine  was  looking  at  him  with  the  laughing,  scornful 
expression  that  the  German  lady  bent  upon  the  awkward 
lover  who  knelt  at  her  feet.  His  face  darkened  in  an 
mstant. 


284  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  Have  I  offended  you  ? "  she  asked  gently  ;  "  I  remem- 
ber now  you  did  not  admire  that  picture." 

"I  liked  ever}'thing  about  it  save  the  expression  of 
the  girl's  face,  I  think  you  will  also  re.nember  that  [ 
said  that  such  a  face  should  be  put  to  nobler  uses." 

Christine  flushed  slightly,  and  for  a  moment  was  posi- 
tively afraid  of  him.  She  saw  that  she  must  be  more 
careful,  for  she  was  dealing  with  one  of  quick  eye  and 
mind.  At  the  same  time  her  conscience  reproached  her 
again.  The  more  she  saw  of  him  the  more  she  realized 
how  sincere  and  earnest  he  was  ;  how  different  from  ordi- 
nary society-men,  to  whom  an  unsuccessful  suit  to  a  fair 
lady  is  a  mere  annoyance.  But  she  was  not  one  to  give  up 
a  purpose  readily  for  the  sake  of  conscience  or  anytliing 
else,  and  certainly  not  now,  when  seemingly  on  tlie  point 
of  success.     So  she  said  with  a  slight  laugh : 

"Do  not  compare  me  to  any  of  those  old  heathen 
again,"  and  having  thus  given  a  sligbt  reason,  or  excuse, 
for  her  unfortunate  e^cpression,  she  proceeded  to  beguile 
him  more  thoroughly  than  ever,  by  the  subtle  witchery  of 
smiles,  glances  and  words,  that  might  mean  everything  or 
nothing, 

"  You  seem  to   have   a  study   on   your   easel   there," 
said  Dennis,  as  they  stood  together  in  the  studio,     "May« 
I  see  it?" 

"  No,"  said  she,  "  you  are  to  see  nothing  till  you  see  a 
triumph  in  the  portrayal  of  feeling  and  life-like  earnest- 
ness that  even  your  critical  eye  cannot  condemn." 

She  justly  feared  that,  should  he  see  her  work,  he 
might  discover  her  plan,  for  however  she  might  disguise  it, 
something  suggesting  himself  entered  into  all  her  studies. 

"  I  hope  you  will  succeed,  but  doubt  it." 

"  Why .? "  she  asked  quickly. 

^  Because  we  cannot  portray  what  we  cannot  feel.    The 


BEGUILED.  285 

stream  cannot  rise  higher  than  its  fountain."  Then  he 
added  with  heightened  color,  and  some  hesitation,  "  I  fear 
— your  heart  is  still  sleeping,"  and  he  watched  with  deep 
anxiety  how  she  would  take  the  questioning  remark. 

At  first  she  flushed  almost  angrily,  but  recovering 
self-possession  in  a  moment,  she  threw  upon  him  an  arch 
smile,  suggesting  all  that  a  lover  could  wish,  and  said : 

"  Be  careful,  Mr.  Fleet ;  you  are  seeking  to  penetrate 
mysteries  that  we  most  jealously  guard.  You  know  that 
in  the  ancient  temple  there  was  an  inner  sanctuary 
which  none  might  enter." 

"Yes,  one  might,"  said  Dennis  significantly. 

With  her  long  lashes  she  veiled  the  dark  blue  eyes  that 
expressed  anything  but  tender  feeling,  and  yet,  so  shaded, 
they  appeared  as  a  lover  would  wish,  and  in  a  low  tone 
she  answered: 

"  Well,  he  could  not  enter  when  he  would,  only  when 
permitted." 

And  she  raised  her  eyes  quickly  to  see  the  effect.  And 
she  did  see  an  effect  that  she  would  have  given  thousands 
to  be  able  to  transfer  to  canvas. 

His  face,  above  all  she  had  ever  seen,  seemed' designed 
to  express  feeling,  passion  ;  and  his  wearing  life  had  made 
it  so  thin,  and  his  eyes  were  so  large  and  lustrous  that 
the  spiritual  greatly  predominated,  and  she  felt  as  if  she 
could  almost  see  the  throbs  of  the  strong  passionate  heart. 

Apart  from  her  artistic  purposes,  contact  with  such 
warm  intense  life  had  for  Christine  a  glowing  fascination. 
She  had  not  realized  that  in  kindling  and  fanning  this 
flame  of  honest  love  to  sevenfold  power  and  heat,  she 
might  be  kindle :1  herself  When,  therefore,  she  saw  the 
face  of  Dennis  Fleet  eloquent  with  the  deepest,  strongest 
feeling  that  human  features  can  portray,  another  chord  than 
the  artistic   one  was   touched,  and  there  was  a  Icnv  faint 


286  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

trill  of  that  music  which  often  becomes  the  sweetest  har- 
mony of  life. 

"  And  at  some  time  in  the  future  may  I  hope  to  enter  ? " 
he  asked  tremulously. 

She  threw  him  another  smile  over  her  shoulder  as  she 
turned  to  her  easel — a  smile  that  from  a  true  woman  would 
mean,  You  may,  but  which  from  many  would  mean  nothing, 
ard  said  vaguely : 

"  What  is  life  without  hope  ?  "  and  then,  as  matters  were 
going  too  fast  and  far,  decisively  changed  the  subject. 

Seated  at  her  easel  she  painted  eagerly  and  rapidly,  while 
he  measured  the  space  over  and  around  the  fireplace  with  a 
view  to  its  ornamentation,  ^he  kept  the  conversation  on 
the  general  subject  of  art,  and  though  Dennis  knew  it  not, 
every  glance  to  his  face  was  that  of  a  portrait-painter. 


CHAPTER  XXXIV. 


BOTH    DENNIS    AND    CHRISTINE     LEARN     SOMETHING     SUR- 
PRISING. 

Dennis  went  back  to  the  store  in  a  maze  of  hopes  and 
fears,  but  hope  predominated.  Christine  could  not  be  in- 
different and  treat  him  as  she  did,  if  she  had  a  particle  of 
sincerit}',  and  with  a  lover's  faith  he  would  not  believe  her 
false,  though  he  knew  her  to  be  so  faulty. 

"  At  any  rate,"  he  said  to  himself,  "  in  this  new  arrange* 
ment  T  have  all  the  opportunity  a  man  could  ask,  and  if  I 
cannot  develop  her  plainly  manifested  interest  into  some- 
thing more  decisive  by  such  companionship,  I  may  as  well 
despair,"  and  he  determined  to  avail  himself  of  every  advan- 
tage within  his  reach  in  making  the  most  of  what  he  deemeH 


DENNIS  AND  CHRISTINE  SURPRISED.  287 

a  rare  stroke  of  fortune.  His  greatly  increased  salary  En- 
abled him  to  dress  with  that  taste  and  even  elegance  so 
pleasing  to  a  lady's  eye,  and  he  had  withal  acquired  that 
ease  and  grace  of  manner  which  familiarity  with  the  best 
society  bestows. 

It  is  also  well  to  tell  the  reader  that  after  some  hes- 
itation Dennis  had  confided  his  feelings  to  his  mother, 
and  received  from  her  the  warmest  sympathy.  To 
Ethel  Fleet's  unworldly  nature,  that  he  should  fall  in 
love  with  and  marry  his  employer's  daughter,  seemed  em- 
inently fitting,  with  just  a  spice  of  beautiful  romance. 
And  it  was  her  son's  happiness  and  Christine's  beauty  that 
she  thought  of,  not  Mr.  Ludolph's  money.  In  truth  such 
was  her  admiration  for  her  son,  she  felt  that  with  all  her 
wealth  the  young  lady  would  receive  a  greater  honor  than 
she  conferred.  Though  Dennis  wrote  with  the  partiality 
of  a  lover,  he  could  not  so  portray  Christine's  character  but 
that  his  mother  felt  the  deepest  anxiety,  and  often  sighed 
in  sad  foreboding  of  serious  trouble  in  the  future. 

From  Mrs.  Fleet's  knowledge  of  her  son's  passion, 
Christine,  though  she  knew  it  not,  received  another  advan- 
tage of  incalculable  value.  Dennis  had  painted  an  ex- 
cellent little  cabinet  likeness  of  her,  and  sent  it  to  his 
mother.  In  the  quiet  of  the  night  she  would  sit  down  be- 
fore that  picture,  and  by  her  strong  imagination  summon 
her  ideal  of  Christine,  and  then  lead  her  directly  to  Christ, 
as  parents  brought  their  children  of  old.  Could  such 
prayers  and  faith  be  in  vain  ?  Faith  is  often  sorely  tried 
in  this  world,  but  never  tried  in  vain. 

Day  after  day  Dennis  went  to  Mr.  Ludolph's  new  home 
.during  the  morning  hours,  and  Christine's  spell  worked 
with  bewildering  and  increasing  power.  While  she  tor- 
tured him  with  many  doubts  and  fears,  his  hope  grew  to  be 
almost  a  certainty  that  he  had  at  last  made  a  place  for  him- 


288  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

self  in  her  heart.  Sometimes  the  whole  story  of  his  love 
trembled  on  his  lips,  but  she  never  permitted  its  utter- 
ance. That  she  determined  should  be  reserved  for  the 
climax.  He  usually  met  her  alone,  but  noticed  that  in 
the  presence  of  others  she  was  cool  and  undemonstrative, 
Mr.  Ludolph  rarel)'^  saw  them  together,  and  when  he  did, 
there  was  nothing  in  his  daughter's  manner  to  awaken  sus- 
picion. This  perfectly  acted  indifference  in  the  presence 
of  others,  and  equally  well  acted  regard  when  alone,  often 
puzzled  Dennis  sorely.     But  at  last  he  concluded  : 

"  She  is  wiser  than  I.  She  knows  that  I  am  in  no  con- 
dition now  to  make  proposals  for  her  hand :  therefore  it  is 
better  that  there  should  be  no  recognized  understanding 
between  us,"  and  he  would  resolve  to  be  as  prudent  as  she. 
Then  again  she  would  so  awaken  his  jealousy  and  fears, 
that  he  would  feel  that  he  must  know  his  fate, — that  any- 
thing was  better  than  such  torturing  uncertainty. 

As  for  Christine,  two  processes  were  going  on  in  her 
mind,  one  that  she  recognized,  and  one  that  she  did  not. 

Her  artistic  aims  were  clear  and  definite.  In  the  first 
place  she  meant  to  perfectly  master  the  human  face  as 
it  expressed  emotions,  especially  such  as  were  of  a  tender 
nature ;  and  in  the  second  place  she  intended  to  paint  a 
picture  that  in  itself  would  make  her  famous.  She  chose 
a  most  difficult  and  delicate  subject — of  the  character  she 
had  ever  failed  in — a  declaration  of  love.  When  Dennis 
commenced  to  work  again  in  her  presence,  the  picture 
was  well  advanced. 

In  a  grand  old  hall,  whose  sides  were  decorated  with 
armor  and  weapons,  a  young  man  stood  pleading  his  cause 
with  a  1  idy  whose  hand  he  held.  The  young  girl's  face 
was  so  averted  that  only  a  beautiful  profile  was  visible, 
but  her  form  and  attitude  were  grace  itself  The  lovers 
stood  in  an  angle  of  the  hall  near  an  open  window,  through 


DENNIS  AND  CHRISTINE  SURPRISED.  289 

which  was  seen  a  fine  landscape,  a  picture  within  a  picture. 
But  Christine  meant  to  concentrate  all  her  power  and  skill 
on  the  young  knight's  face.  This  should  be  eloquent  with 
all  the  feeling  and  passion  that  the  human  face  could  ex- 
press, and  she  would  insure  its  truthfulness  to  life  by  copy- 
ing life  itself — the  reality.  Dennis  Fleet  was  the  human 
victim  that  she  was  offering  on  the  altar  of  her  ambition. 

Much  of  the  picture  was  merely  in  outline,  but  she 
finished  the  form  and  features  of  the  suppliant  in  all 
save  the  expression,  and  this  she  meant  to  paint  from 
his  face  whenever  she  was  in  the  right  mood,  and  could 
bring  matters  to  a  crisis. 

After  he  had  been  coming  to  the  house  tvvo  or  three 
times  a  week  for  nearly  a  month,  she  felt  that  she  was  ready 
for  the  final  scene,  and  yet  she  dreaded  it,  she  had  staked 
so  much  hope  upon  it.  It  also  provoked  her  to  find  that 
she  was  really  afraid  of  him.  His  was  such  a  strong,  sin- 
cere nature,  that  she  felt  increasingly  the  wrong  of  trifling 
with  it.  In  vain  she  tried  to  quiet  herself  by  saying :  "  I 
do  not  care  a  straw  for  him,  and  he  will  soon  get  over  his 
infatuation  on  #scovering  the  truth." 

But  she  had  a  lesson  to  learn  as  well  as  he,  for  as  we 
have  intimated,  unrecognized  as  yet,  there  was  a  process 
going  on  in  her  mind  that  in  time  would  make  strange 
havoc  in  her  cold  philosophy.  Her  heart's  long  winter 
was  slowly  breaking  up ;  her  girlish  passion,  intense  as 
it  was  foolish,  proved  that  she  had  a  heart.  Everything 
had  been  against  her.  Everything  in  her  experience 
and  education,  and  especially  in  her  father's  strong 
character  and  prejudices,  had  combined  to  deaden  and  to 
c:hill  her ;  and  had  these  influences  continued,  she  would 
undoubtedly  have  become  as  cold  and  hard  as  some  whom 
we  find  in  advanced  lite  with  natures  like  the  poles,  where 
the  ire  gathers  year  after  year,  but  never  melts. 


ago 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


But  in  Dennis  Fleet  she  met  a  nature  as  positive  as 
she  was  becoming  negative.  He  was  so  warm  and  eamesi 
that  when  she  commenced  to  fan  his  love  into  a  stronger 
riame  for  purely  artistic  purposes,  as  she  vowed  to  herself^ 
'«ome  sparks  of  the  sacred  fire  fell  on  the  cold  altar  of 
lier  own  heart  and  slowly  began  to  kindle. 

But  this  awakening  would  not  now  be  that  of  a  child 
but  of  the  woman.     Therefore,  Mr.  Ludolph,  beware ! 

But  she  had  yet  much  to  learn  in  the  hard,  strange 
school  of  experience  before  she  would  truly  know  herself 
or  her  own  needs. 

Success  in  art,  however,  was  still  her  ruling  passion.  And 
though  strange  misgivings  annoyed  and  perplexed  her, 
though  her  respect  for  Dennis  daily  increased,  and  at  times 
a  sudden  pity  and  softness  made  her  little  hands  hesitate 
before  giving  an  additional  wrench  to  the  rack  of  uncer- 
tainty upon  which  she  kept  him  ;  still,  she  would  not  for  the 
world  have  abandoned  h6r  purpose,  and  such  compunctions 
were  as  yet  but  the  little  back  eddies  of  the  strong  current. 

One  day,  the  latter  part  of  August,  Christine  felt  her- 
self in  the  mood  to  give  the  finishing  touchito  the  principal 
figure  in  her  picture.  The  day  was  somewhat  hazy,  the 
light  subdued  and  favorable  for  artistic  work.  Though  she 
had  prolonged  and  delayed  Dennis'  labors,  to  his' secret 
delight  and  great  encouragement,  she  could  not  keep  him 
employed  much  longer. 

She  sent  for  him  to  come  over  in  the  afternoon.  "  Some 
brackets,  carvings  and  pictures  had  come  for  her  studio, 
and  she  wished  him  to  put  them  up,"  she  said  coolly  as  he 
entered. 

He  had  come  glowing  with  hope  and  almost  assurance, 
for,  the  last  time  they  parted,  she  had  dismissed  him  with 
unusual  kindness.  But  here  was  one  of  those  capricious 
changes  a^ain  that  he  could  not  understand. 


DENNIS  AND  CPIRISTINE  SURPRISED. 


391 


She  took  her  seat  at  her  easel,  saying  with  a  nod  and 
smile,  "  I  can  direct  you  here,  for  I  am  in  a  mood  for 
work  this  afternoon." 

He  bowed  quietly  and  went  on  with  his  task.  Hei 
rather  cool  reception  oppressed  him,  and  the  tormenting 
question  presented  itself,  for  the  hundredth  time,  "  Can 
she  in  any  degree  feel  as  I  do  ? "  He  longed  to  settle  the 
matter  by  plain  straightforward  action. 

Her  maid  knocked  at  the  door,  saying :  "  The  mail, 
Mademoiselle." 

A  dainty  note  was  handed  her  which  seemed  decidedly 
pleasing,  and  Dennis  noticed  that  as  she  read  it  she  wore 
a  solitaire  diamond  on  her  finger  that  he  had  not  seen, 
before.  His  latent  jealousy  was  aroused.  She  saw  that 
her  spell  was  working,  and  smiled.     Soon  she  said  : 

"  Mr.  Fleet,  you  seem  very  grave.  What  is  the  mat- 
ter?" 

He  answered  curtly,  "  Nothing." 

She  looked  at  him  with  a  pretty,  pained  surprise.  At 
the  same  time  her  heart  smote  her.  His  face  was  so  pale 
and  thin,  and  indicated  such  real  suffering  that  she  pitied 
him  more  than  ever.  But  she  would  have  suffered  much 
herself  for  the  sake  of  success,  and  she  was  not  one  to 
hesitate  long  over  the  suffering  of  another.  She  com- 
pressed her  lips  as  she  said  mentally,  "  Art  is  first,  and 
these  transient  feelings  secondary.  There  is  little  in  the 
world  but  that  has  cost  some  one  deeply."  She  thought  a 
profounder  truth  than  she  knew. 

After  a  few  moments  Dennis  said,  in  a  tone  that  had  a 
jealous  tinge : 

"  Miss  Ludolph,  your  correspondent  seems  to  interest 
you  deeply." 

"And  you  also,  I  think,"  she  replied  with  an  arcb 
smile  ;  "  and  you  will  be  interested  still  more  when  you 
know  who  she  is."      And  she  tossed  him  the  note 


292 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY 


"  I  have  no  right — do  not  think  me  prying,"  said  he, 
flushing. 

"I  give  the  right,"  said  she.  "You  know  a  lady  can 
give  many  rights — if  she  chooses,"  she  added  significantly. 

He  looked  at  her  eagerly. 

Her  eyes  fell  consciously,  and  her  cheeks  glowed  with 
excitement,  for  she  felt  that  the  critical  moment  had  come. 
But  instantly  her  proud,  resolute  nature  aroused  as  never 
before,  and  she  determined  to  make  the  most  of  the  occa- 
sion, let  the  consequences  be  what  they  might.  Therefore 
she  worked  eagerly  and  watched  him  closely.  Never  had 
she  been  so  conscious  of  power.  She  felt  inspired,  capa- 
ble of  placing  on  the  canvas  anything  she  chose.  If  in 
this  mood  she  could  succeed  in  bringing  into  his  face  just 
the  expression  she  desired,  she  could  catch  it  and  fix  it 
forever,  and  with  it  make  a  laurel  (not  a  hymeneal)  wreath 
for  her  own  brow.  But  what  could  Dennis  know  of  all 
this  ?  To  him  the  glowing  cheek  and  eyes  so  lustrous  told 
a  different  tale  ;  and  hope — sweet,  exquisite,  almost  assured 
— sprang  up  in  his  heart. 

And  he  meant  that  it  should  be  assured.  He  would 
speak  that  day  if  it  were  possible,  and  know  his  happiness, 
instead  of  fondly  believing  and  hoping  that  all  was  sure. 
Then  he  would  be  as  prudent  and  patient  as  she  desired. 
Thus  Christine  was  destined  to  have  her  wish  fulfilled. 

She  continued  :  "The  note  is  from  a  special  friend  of 
yours ;  indeed  I  think  you  form  a  little  mutual-admiration 
society,  and  you  are  spoken  of,  so  I  think  you  had  better 
read  it." 

"  I  shall  not  read  the  note,"  said  Dennis,  "but  you  may 
tell  me,  if  you  choose,  what  you  think  the  writer  will  have 
no  objection  tc  my  knowing." 

"  And  do  you  mean  to  suggest  that  you  do  not  know 
who  wrote  the  note  ?     I  can  inform  you  that  you  are  to  be 


DENNIS  AND  CHRISTINE  SURPRISED. 


293 


invited  to  a  moon.ight  sail  and  musicale  on  the  wat'^r.  Is 
not  that  a  chance  for  romance  ? " 

"  And  will  you  go  ? "  asked  Dennis  eagerly. 

"  Yes,  \iyou  will,"  she  said  in  a  low  tone,  giving  him  a 
sidelong  glance.     * 

This  was  too  much  for  Dennis,  the  manner  more  than 
the  words,  and  taken  together  they  would  have  led  any 
earnest  man  to  committal.  He  was  about  to  speak  eagerly, 
but  she  was  not  quite  ready. 

"  Moreover,"  she  continued  quickly,  while  Dennis  stood 
before  her  with  cheeks  alternately  hot  and  pale,  "this 
special  friend  who  invites  you  will  be  there.  Now  don't 
pretend  innocence  of  her  name." 

"  I  suppose  you  mean  Miss  Winthrop,"  said  Dennis, 
flushing. 

"  Ah,  you  blush,  do  you  ?  Well,  it  is  my  turn  to  ask 
pardon  for  seeming  curiosity." 

He  drew  a  few  steps  nearer  to  her,  and  the  expression 
she  had  so  longed  to  see  came  into  his  face.  She  looked 
at  him  earnestly  with  her  whole  soul  in  her  eyes.  She 
would  photograph  him  on  memory,  if  possible.  For  a 
moment  or  two  he  hesitated,  embarrassed  by  her  steady 
gaze,  and  seemingly  at  a  loss  for  words.  Then,  in  a  low, 
deep  tone  he  said: 

"  You,  better  than  any  one,  know  that  I  have  no  cause 
to  blush  at  the  mention  of  Miss  Winthrop's  name," 

She  did  not  answer,  but  was  painting  rapidly.  He 
thought  this  was  due  to  natural  excitement  expressing  itself 
in  nervous  action.  But  she  did  not  discourage  him,  and 
this  he  felt  was  everything.  With  his  heart  in  his  eyes 
and  tones,  he  said: 

"  O  Christine,  what  is  the  use  of  wearing  this  trans- 
parent mask  any  longer?  Your  quick  woman's  eye  has 
seen  foi  weeks  the  devoted  love  I  cherish  for  you.     I  have 


294  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

heard  much  of  woman's  intuitions.  Perhaps  you  saw  my 
love  before  I  recognized  it  myself,  since  5'our  grace  rmd 
beauty  caused  it  to  grow  unconsciously  while  I  was  your 
humble  attendant.  But  Christine,  believe  me,  if  you  will 
but  utter  in  words  what  I  fondly  believe  I  ha/e  read  in 
your  kindly  glances  and  manner,  though  so  delicately 
veiled,  if  you  will  give  me  the  strength  and  rest  which  come 
of  assured  hope,  I  know  that  not  far  in  the  future  I  shall 
be  able  to  place  at  your  feet  more  than  mere  wealth.  I, 
too,  hope  to  be  an  artist,  and  you  have  been  my  chief  inspi- 
ration. At  the  store  I  could  show  you  a  picture  now  that 
would  tell  more  of  what  I  mean  than  can  my  poor  words. 
There  is  a  richer  and  happier  world  than  you  have  yet 
known,  and  O  how  I  have  prayed  that  I  might  lead  you  to 
it,"  and  in  words  of  burning  eloquence  he  proceeded  to 
tell  the  ?tory  of  his  love. 

She  heard  him  as  in  a  dream.  She  understood  his 
words,  remembered  them  afterward,  but  so  intent  was  she 
on  her  darling  propose  that  she  heeded  him  not.  His 
voice  sounded  far  away,  and  every  power  of  mind  and  body 
was  cor.centrated  to  transfer  his  expression  to  the  canvas 
before  her.  Even  he,  blinded  as  he  was  by  his  emotions, 
occupied  by  the  long  pent-up  torrent  of  feeling  that  he  was 
pouring  into  her  unheeding  ear,  wondered  at  her  strange 
dazzling  beauty  and  peculiar  manner. 

After  speaking  a  moment  or  two,  the  blur  from  his  eyes 
and  confusion  of  mind  began  to  pass  away,  and  he  was 
perplexed  beyond  measure  at  the  way  she  was  receiving 
the  open  declaration  of  his  love.  She  was  painting  through 
it  all,  not  with  the  nervous  random  stroke  of  one  who 
sought  to  hide  excitement  and  embarrassment  in  occupa- 
tion. She  was  working  earnestly,  consciously,  with  preci- 
sion, and,  what  was  strangest  of  all,  she  seemed  so  intent 
upon  his  face  that  his  words,  which  would  have  been  such 


DENNIS  AND  CHRISTINE  SURPRISED.  295 

music  to  any  woman  that  loved,  apparently  were  unheard. 
He  stopped,  but  the  break  in  his  passionate  flow  of  lan- 
guage was  unnoted. 

"  Christine,  listen  to  me  !  "  he  cried,  in  an  agony  of  fear 
and  perplexity.  The  tone  of  his  appeal  might  have  stirred 
a  marble  bosom  to  pity,  but  she  only  raised  her  left  hand 
deprecatingly  as  if  warding  off  an  interruption,  while  she 
worked  with  intense  eagerness  with  her  right. 

"  Christine ! " — a  frown  contracted  her  brow  for  a 
tecond,  but  she  worked  on. 

He  looked  at  her  as  if  fearing  she  had  lost  her  reason, 
but  there  was  no  madness  in  her  swift,  intelligent  strokes 
Then  like  a  flash  the  thought  came  to  him — 

"  It  is  my  face,  not  myself,  that  she  wants  !  This,  then, 
has  been  the  secret  of  her  new  hope  as  an  artist.  She 
would  not  feel,  as  I  told  her  she  must,  but  she  would  call 
out  and  copy  my  emotion  ;  and  this  scene,  which  means 
life  or  death  to  me,  is  to  her  but  a  lesson  in  Art,  and  I  am 
no  more  than  the  human  subject  under  the  surgeon's  knife. 
But  surely  no  anatomist  is  so  cruel  as  to  put  in  his  lancet 
before  the  man  is  dead." 

Every  particle  of  color  receded  from  his  face,  and  he 
watched  her  manner  for  the  confirmation  of  his  thought. 

Her  face  was  indeed  a  study.  A  beautiful  smile  parted 
her  lips,  her  eyes  glowed  with  the  exultation  of  assured  and 
almost  accomplished  success,  and  she  looked  like  an 
inspired  priestess  at  a  Greek  oracle. 

But  a  bitterness  beyond  words  was  filling  his  heart. 

A  few  more  skilful  strokes,  and  she  threw  down  her 
brush,  crying  in  ecstatic  tones — 

"  Eureka !  Eureka  ! "  as  she  stood  before  the  painting 
in  rapt  admiration. 

In  an  instant  he  stood  by  her  side.  With  all  the  pride 
of  triumph  she  pointed  to  the  picture,  and  said  : 


296  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  Criticise  that,  if  you  can !  Deny  that  there  is  sou], 
life,  feeling  there,  if  you  dare !  Is  that  painting  but  a  *  beau- 
tiful corpse  ? ' " 

Dennis  saw  a  figure  and  features  suggesting  his  own, 
pleading  with  all  the  eloquence  of  true  love  before  the 
averted  face  of  the  maiden  in  the  picture.  It  was  indeed 
a  triumph,  having  all  the  power  of  the  reality. 

Dennis  passed  his  hand  quickly  across  his  forehead, 
as  if  to  repel  some  terrible  delusion,  while  yel  he  whispered 
its  reality  to  himself,  in  silent  despairing  confession — 

"  Ah  my  God !  How  cold  she  must  be  when  she  can 
see  any  one  look  like  that,  and  yet  copy  the  expression  as 
from  a  painted  face  upon  the  wall ! " 

Then  his  own  pride  and  indignation  rising,  he  deter 
mined  at  once  to  know  the  truth ;  whether  he  held  anyplace 
in  her  heart,  or  whether  the  picture  was  all,  and  he  noth- 
ing. 

Drawing  a  step  nearer,  as  if  to  examine  more  closely, 
he  seized  a  brush  of  paint  and  drew  it  over  the  face  that 
had  cost  both  him  and  Christine  so  much,  and  then  turned 
and  looked  at  her. 

For  a  moment  she  stood  paralyzed,  so  great  seeme4 
the  disaster.  Then  she  turned  on  him  in  fury.  "  How 
dare  you  !  "  she  exclaimed. 

Only  equal  anger,  and  the  consciousness  of  right,  could 
have  sustained  any  man  under  the  lightning  of  her  eyes. 

~"  Rather,  let  me  ask,  How  dare  you  ? "  he  replied  in  the 
deep  concentrated  voice  of  passion — and  lover  and  lady 
stood  before  the  ruined  picture  with  blazing  eyes.  In  the 
same  low  stern  voice  he  continued : 

'•  I  see  the  secret  of  your  artistic  hope  now.  Miss  Lu* 
dolph,  but  permit  me  to  say  that  you  have  made  your  first 
and  last  success,  and  there  in  that  black  stain,  most  appro- 
priately black,  is  the  result. 


DENNIS  AND  CHRISTINE  SURPRISED. 


297 


She  looked  as  if  she  could  have  torn  him  to  atoms. 

"  You  have  been  false,"  he  continued.  "  You  have 
acted  a  lie  before  me  for  weeks.  You  have  deceived  in 
that  which  is  most  sacred,  and  with  sacrilegious  hands 
have  trifled  with  that  which  every  true  man  regards  as 
holy." 

She  trembled  beneath  his  stern  accusing  words.  Con- 
science echoed  them,  anger  and  courage  were  fast  desert- 
ing her  in  the  presence  of  the  aroused  and  more  powerful 
spirit  of  her  wronged  lover.     But  she  said  petulantly: 

"  Nonsense  !  You  know  well  that  half  the  ladies  of  the 
city  would  have  flirted  with  you  from  mere  vanity  and  love 
of  power  ;  my  motive  was  infinitely  beyond  this." 

Until  now  this  had  almost  seemed  sufficient  reason  to 
excuse  her  action,  but  she  distrusted  it  even  to  loathing  as 
she  saw  the  look  of  scorn  come  out  on  his  noble  face. 

"And  is  that  your  best  plea  for  falsehood?  A  mo- 
ment ago  I  loved  you  with  a  devotion  that  you  will  never 
receive  again.     But  now  I  despise  you." 

"  Sir ! "  she  cried,  with  her  face  scarlet  with  shame  and 
unger,  "leave  this  room ! " 

"  Yes,  in  a  moment,  and  never  again  to  enter  it  while 
Christine  Ludolph  is  as  false  in  character  as  she  is  beauti- 
ful in  person.  But  before  I  go,  you,  in  your  pride  and 
silken  luxury,  shall  hear  the  truth  for  once.  Not  only  have 
you  been  false,  but  you  have  been  what  no  true  woman 
ever  can  be — cruel  as  death.  Your  pencil  has  been  a 
stiletto  with  which  you  have  slowly  felt  for  my  heart.  You 
have  dipped  your  brush  in  human  suffering  as  if  it  were 
common  paint  Giotto  stabbed  a  man  and  mercifully  took 
him  off"  by  a  few  quick  pangs,  that  he  might  paint  his 
dying  look.  You,  more  cruel,  accomplish  your  purpose  by 
slow,  remorseless  torture.  Merciful  Heaven  only  knows 
what  I  have  suffered  since  you  smiled  and  frowned  on  me 


,98  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

by  turns,  but  I  felt  that  if  I  could  only  win  your  love,  1 
would  gladly  endure  all.  You  falsely  made  me  believe 
that  1  had  won  it,  and  yet  all  the  while  you  were  dissect- 
ing my  heart  as  a  surgeon  might  a  living  subject.  And 
now  what  have  you  to  offer  to  solace  the  bitterness  of 
coming  years  ?  Do  you  not  know  that  such  deeds  make 
men  bad,  faithless,  devilish  ?  Never  dream  of  success  till 
you  are  changed  utterly.  Only  the  noble  in  deed  and  in 
truth  can  reach  high  and  noble  art." 

He  left  her  seated  at  the  defaced  picture  with  her  face 
bowed  in  her  hands. 

She  thought  he  was  gone,  but  sat  still  like  one  doomed. 
A  few  moments  passed  and  she  was  startled  by  hearing 
his  voice  again.  It  was  no  longer  harsh  and  stern,  but 
sad,  grave,  and  pitiful. 

"  Miss  Ludolph,  may  God  in  His  mercy  forgive  you. 
I  also  will  pray  for  strength  to  do  the  same." 

She  trembled.  Pride  and  better  feeling  were  contend- 
ing for  the  mastery.  After  a  few  moments  she  sprang  up 
and  reached  out  her  hands ;  but  he  was  gone  now  in  very 
truth. 


CHAPTER  XXXV. 

THE  TWO  PICTURES. 

When  Christine  saw  that  Dennis  was  not  in  the  room, 
she  rushed  to  a  window  only  in  time  to  see  his  retreating 
form  passing  down  the  street.  For  a  moment  she  felt  like 
one  left  alone  to  perish  on  a  sinking  wreck.  His  words, 
so  assured  in  their  tones,  seemed  like  those  of  a  prophet. 
Conscience  echoed  them,  and  a  chill  of  fear  came  over  her 


THE  TWO  PICTURES.  299 

heait.  What  if  he  were  right?  What  if  she  had  let  the- 
one  golden  opportunity  of  her  life  pass  ?  Even  though  she 
had  stolen  her  inspiration  from  him  through  guile  And 
cruelty,  had  he  not  enabled  her  to  accomplish  more  than  in 
all  her  life  before  ?  To  what  might  he  not  have  led  her,  if 
she  had  put  her  hand  frankly  and  truthfully  in  his  ?  There 
are  times  when  to  those  most  bewildered  in  mazes  of  error, 
light  breaks,  clear  and  unmistakable,  defining  right  and 
wrong  with  terrible  distinctness.  Such  an  hour  was  this 
to  Christine.  The  law  of  God  written  on  her  heart  as- 
serted itself,  and  she  trembled  at  the  guilty  thing  she  saw 
herself  to  be.  But  there  seamed  no  remedy  save  in  the 
one  she  had  driven  away,  never  to  return,  as  she  believed. 
After  a  brief  but  painful  revery  she  exclaimed : 

"  But  what  am  I  thinking  of?  What  can  he  or  any  man 
of  this  land  be  to  me  ?  " 

Then  pride,  her  dominant  trait,  awoke  as  she  recalled 
his  words. 

"  He  despises  me,  does  he  ?  I  will  teach  him  that  I 
belong  to  a  sphere  he  cannot  touch,  the  poor  infatuated 
youth !  And  did  he  dream  that  I,  Christine  Ludolph,  could 
give  him  my  hand.  He  shall  learn  some  day  that  none  in 
this  land  could  receive  that  honor,  and  none  save  the 
proudest  in  my  own  may  hope  for  it.  The  idea  of  my 
giving  up  my  ancient  and  honorable  name  for  the  sake  of 
this  unknown  Yankee  youth !  Father  would  indeed  say  that 
the  Gudgeon  farce  was  enacted  over  again." 

Bold,  proud  words  that  her  heart  did  not  echo. 

But  pride  and  anger  were  now  her  controlling  impulses, 
and  with  the  strong  grasp  of  her  resolute  will  she  crushed 
back  her  gentler  and  better  feelings,  and  became  more  icy 
and  hard  than  ever. 

By  such  choice  and  action,  men  and  women  commi^ 
moral  suicide. 


300 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


With  a  cold  white  face,  and  a  burnished  gleam  in  hei 
eyes,  she  went  to  the  easel  and  commenced  painting  oul 
the  ominous  black  stain. 

"  I'll  prove  him  a  false  prophet  also.  I  will  be  an  artis.* 
without  passing  through  all  his  sentimental  and  supersti 
tious  phases  that  have  so  amused  me  during  the  past  weeks 
I  have  seen  his  lovelorn  face  too  often  not  to  be  able  tc 
reproduce  ir  and  its  various  expressions." 

Her  strokes  were  quick  and  almost  fierce. 

"  Mrs.  Dennis  Fleet,  ha !  ha !  Ha ! "  and  her  laugh  was 
as  harsh  and  discordant  as  the  feeling  that  prompted  it. 

Again,  a  little  later : 

"  He  despises  me  !  Well,  he  is  the  first  man  that  ever 
dared  say  that,"  and  her  face  was  flushed  and  dark  with 
anger. 

Dennis  at  first  walked  rapidly  from  the  scene  of  his  bit- 
ter disappointment,  but  his  steps  soon  grew  slow  and  feeble. 
The  point  of  endurance  was  passed.  .  Body  and  mind  act- 
ing and  reacting  on  each  other  had  been  taxed  beyond 
their  powers,  and  both  were  giving  way.  He  felt  that  they 
were,  and  struggled  to  reach  the  store  before  the  crisis 
came.  Weak  and  trembling,  he  mounted  the  steps  bul  fell 
fainting  across  the  threshold.  One  of  the  clerks  saw  him 
fall  and  gave  the  alarm.  Mr.  Ludolph,  Mr.  Schwartz,  and 
others  hastened  to  the  spot.  Dennis  was  carried  to  his 
room  and  a  messenger  despatched  for  Dr.  Arten.  Ernst, 
witli  flying  feet,  and  wild,  frightened  face,  soon  reached  his 
home  in  DeKoven-street,  and  startled  his  father  and  mother 
uilh  the  tidings. 

The  child  feared  that  Dennis  was  dead,  his  face  was 
so  thin  nnd  white.  Leaving  the  children  in.  Ernst's  care, 
botli  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bruder.  prompted  by  their  strong  grati 
tude  ^or  Dennis,  rushed  through  the  streets  as  if  distrarted 


THE  TWO  PICTURES.  301 

Their  intense  anxiety  and  warm  German  hearts  caused 
Ihem  to  heed  no  more  the  curious  glances  cast  after  them 
than  would  a  man  swimming  for  life  note  the  ripple  he 
made. 

When  Dennis  regained  consciousness,  they,  with  Mr. 
Ludolph,  and  Dr.  Arten,  wjere  standing  around.  At  first 
his  mind  was  confused  and  he  could  not  understand  it  all, 

"  Where  am  I  ? "  he  asked  feebly,  "  and  what  has  hap- 
pened ? " 

"  Do  not  be  alarmed,  you  have  only  had  a  faint  turn," 
Skid  the  Doctor. 

"  O  Mr.  Fleet,  you  vork  too  hart,  you  vork  too  hart,  I 
knew  dis  vould  come,"  sobbed  Mrs.  Bruder. 

"  Why,  his  duties  in  the  store  have  not  been  so  onerous 
of  late,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph,  in  some  surprise. 

"  It  is  "not  de  vork  in  de  store,  but  he  vork  nearly  aS 
night  too.  Den  he  haf  had  trouble,  I  know  he  haf.  Do  he 
say  no  vort  about  him  ? " 

Dennis  gave  Mrs.  Bruder  a  sudden  warning  look,  and 
then,  through  the  strong  instinct  to  guard  his  secret,  roused 
himself. 

"  Is  anything  serious,  Doctor  ? "  he  asked. 

The  physician  looked  grave,  and  said  ; 

"  Your  pulse  and  whole  appearance  indicate  great  ex* 
haustion  and  physical  depression,  and  I  also  fear  that  fever 
may  set  in." 

"  I  think  you  are  right,"  said  Dennis.  "  I  feel  as  if  I 
were  going  to  be  sick.  My  mind  has  a  tendency  to  wander. 
Mr.  Ludolph,  will  you  permit  me  to  go  home?  If  I  am  to 
be  sick,  I  want  to  be  with  my  mother." 

Mr.  Ludolph  looked  inquiringly  at  the  Doctor,  who  saic 
fignificantly  in  a  low  lone  : 

"  I  think  it  would  be  as  well." 

"  Certainly,  Fleet,"  said  his  employer ;  "  though  I  hope 


302 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


it  is  only  a  temporary  indisposition,  and  that  you  will  be 
back  in  a  few  days.  You  must  try  and  get  a  good  night's 
rest,  and  so  be  prepared  for  the  journey  in  the  morning." 

"With  your  permission  I  will  go  at  once.  A  train 
iCaves  now  in  an  hour,  and  by  morning  I  can  be  at  home." 

"  I  scarcely  think  it  prudent,"  began  the  Doctor. 

"  O  certainly  not  to-night,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph,  also. 

"  Pardon  me,  I  must  go  at  once,"  interrupted  Dennis, 
briefly  and  so  decidedly  that  the  gentlemen  looked  at  each 
other  and  said  no  more. 

"  Mr.  Bruder,"  he  continued,  "  I  must  be  indebted  to 
y^ou  for  a  real  proof  of  your  friendship.  In  that  drawer 
y^ou  will  find  my  money.  The  key  is  in  my  pocketbook. 
Will  you  get  a  carriage  and  take  me  to  the  depot  at  once, 
and  can  you  be  so  kind  as  to  go  on  home  with  me  ?  I 
:;annot  trust  myself  alone.  Mrs.  Bruder,  will  you  pack  up 
what  you  think  I  need  ?  " 

His  faithful  friends  hastened  to  do  his  bidding. 

"  Mr.  Ludolph,  you  have  been  very  kind  to  me.  I  am 
sorry  this  has  occurred,  i)ut  cannot  help  it.  I  thank  you 
gratefully,  and  will  now  trespass  on  your  valuable  time  no 
longer." 

Mr.  Ludolph,  feeling  that  he  could  be  of  no  further  use, 
said: 

"You  will  be  back  in  a  week,  Fleet.  Courage.  Good- 
bye." 

Dennis  turned  eagerly  to  the  Doctor  and  said  : 

"  Can  you  not  give  me  something  that  will  reduce  the 
fever  and  keep  me  sane  a  little  longer  ?  I  know  that  I  am 
going  to  be  delirious,  but  would  reach  the  refuge  of  home 
first." 

A  prescription  was  given  and  immediately  procured, 
and  the  Doctor  went  away  shaking  his  head — 


THE  TWO  PICTURES.  303 

"This  is  the  way  people  commit  suicide.  They  know 
no  more  about,  or  pay  no  more  heed  to,  the  laws  of  health 
than  the  laws  of  China.  Here  is  the  result :  This  young 
fellow  has  worked  in  a  way  that  would  break  down  a  cast- 
iron  machine,  and  now  may  never  see  Chicago  again." 

But  Dennis  might  have  worked  even  in  his  intense  way 
for  months  and  years  without  serious  harm,  had  not  a  fair 
white  hand  kept  him  on  the  rack  of  uncertainty  and  fear. 

Not  work,  but  worry  makes  havoc  of  health. 


In  the  gray  dawn  Ethel  Fleet,  summoned  from  her  rest, 
received  her  son,  weak,  unconscious,  muttering  in  delirium, 
and  not  recognizing  even  her  familiar  face.  He  was  in- 
deed a  sad,  painful  contrast  to  the  ruddy,  buoyant  youth 
who  left  her  a  few  short  months  before,  abounding  in  hope 
and  life.  But  she  comforted  herself  with  the  thought  that 
neither  sin  nor  shame  had  brought  him  home. 

We  need  not  dwell  on  the  weary  weeks  that  followed. 
Dennis  had  every  advantage  that  could  result  from  good 
medical  skill  and  the  most  faithful  nursing.  But  we  be- 
lieve that  his  life  lay  rather  in  his  mother's  prayers  of  faith. 
In  her  strong  realization  of  the  spiritual  world  she  would 
go  continually  into  the  very  presence  of  Jesus,  and  say, 
"  Lord,  he  whom  Thou  lovest  is  sick :  "  or,  like  parents 
of  old,  she  would  seem  by  her  importunity  to  bring  the 
Divine  Physician  to  his  very  bedside. 

Mr.  Bruder,  too,  insisted  on  remaining,  and  watched 
with  the  unwearied  faithfulness  of  one  who  felt  that  he 
owed  to  Dennis  far  more  than  life.  It  was  indeed  touch- 
ing to  see  this  man,  once  so  desperate  and  depraved,  now 
almost  as  patient  and  gentle  as  the  mother  herself,  sitting 
by  his  unconscious  friend,  often  turning  his  eyes  heaven- 
wswd  and  muttering  in  deep  guttural  German  as  sincere  a 


304  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY 

prayer  as  ever  passed  human  lips,  that  Dennis  might  t-e 
spared. 

The  hand  of  God  seemed  about  to  take  him  from  them, 
but  their  strong,  loving  faith  laid  hold  of  that  hand,  and 
put  upon  it  the  restraint  that  only  reverent,  believing 
prayer  can.  Dennis  lived.  After  many  days  delirium 
ceased,  and  the  confused  mind  became  clear.  But  during 
his  delirium  Ethel  and  Mr.  Bruder  leairned  from  the  oft- 
repeated  words,  "  Cruel,  cruel  Christine  !  "  the  nature  of 
the  wound  that  had  nearly  destroyed  his  life. 

Mr.  Ludolph  was  late  in  reaching  his  home  the 
evening  Dennis  was  taken  sick.  Christine  sat  in  the 
dusk  on  the  ivy-shaded  piazza,  awaiting  him.  He  said 
abruptly : 

"  What  have  you  been  doing  to  Fleet,  over  here  ? " 

For  a  second  her  heart  stood  still,  and  she  was  glad 
the  increasing  gloom  disguised  her  face.  By  a  great  effort 
she  replied  in  a  cool,  matter-of-fact  tone : 

"I  do  not  understand  your  question.  Mr.  Fleet  was 
here  this  afternoon,  and  gave  some  finishing  touches  to 
my  studio.     I  do  not  think  I  shall  need  him  any  more." 

Her  quiet,  indifferent  voice  would  have  disarmed  sus- 
picion itself. 

"  It  is  well  you  do  not,  for  he  seems  to  have  received 
some  '  finishing  touches'  himself.  He  fell  across  the 
threshold  of  the  store  in  a  dead  faint,  and  has  gone  home, 
threatened  with  a  serious  illness." 

Even  her  resolute  will  could  not  prevent  a  sharp, 
startled  exclamation. 

"  What  is  the  matter  ?  "  said  her  father  hastily  ;  '  you 
:i!e  not  going  to  faint  also,  are  you.''" 

"No,"  said  Christine  quietly  again;  "but  I  am  tired 
and  nervous,  and  you  told  your  news  so  abruptly.  Why  it 
seemed  but  a  moment  ago  he  was   here   at  work,  and  now 


THE  TWO  PICTURES.  305 

he  is  dangerously  ill.     What  an  uncertain  stumbling  for- 
ward in  the  dark  life  is  I " 

This  was  a  style  of  moralizing  peculiarly  distasteful  to 
Mr.  Ludolph — all  the  more  repugnant  because  it  seemed, 
true,  and  brought  home  in  Dennis'  experience.  An)  thing 
that  interfered  with  his  plans  and  interests,  even  though  it 
might  be  God's  providence,  always  angered  him.  And  now 
he  was  irritated  at  the  loss  of  one  of  his  best  clerks,  just 
as  he  was  becoming  of  great  value  ;  so  he  said  sharply : 

"  I  hope  you  are  not  leaning  toward  the  silly  cant  of 
mysterious  providence.  Life  is  uncertain,  stumbling  only  to 
fools  who  can't  see  the  chances  that  fortune  throws  right 
in  their  way,  or  recognize  the  plain  laws  of  health  and  suc- 
cess. This  young  Fleet  has  been  putting  two  days'  work 
in  one  for  the  past  four  months,  and  now  perhaps  his  work 
is  done  forever,  for  the  doctor  looked  very  grave  over  him." 

Again  the  shadow  of  night  proved  most  friendly  to 
Christine.  Her  face  had  a  frightened,  guilty  look  that  it 
was  well  her  father  did  not  see,  or  he  would  have  wrung 
from  her  the  whole  story.  She  felt  the  chill  of  a  terrible 
dread  at  heart.  If  he  should  die,  her  conscience  would 
give  a  fearful  verdict  against  her.  She  stood  trembling, 
feeling  almost  powerless  to  move. 

"Come,"  said  her  father  sharply,  "I  am  hungry  and 
tu-ed." 

"I  will 'ring  for  lights  and  supper,"  said  Christine 
hastily,  and  then  fled  to  her  own  room. 

When  she  appeared,  her  father  was  sitting  at  the  table 
impatiently  awaiting  her.  But  her  face  was  so  white,  and 
there  was  such  an  expression  in  her  eyes,  that  he  started 
and  said : 

"  What  is  the  matter  ?  " 

His  question  irritated  her,  and  she  replied  as  sharply 
as  he  had  spoken : 


3o6  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAV. 

"  I  told  you  I  was  tired,  and  I  don't  feel  well.  I  have 
been  a  month  in  constant  effort  to  get  this  house  to  rights, 
and  I  am  worn  out,  I  suppose." 

He  looked  at  her  keenly,  but  said  more  kindly : 
"  Here,  my  dear,  take  this  wine,"  and  he  poured  out  a 
glass  of  old  port. 

She  drank  it  eagerly,  for  she  felt  she  must  have  some- 
thing that  would  give  her  life,  warmth,  and  courage.  In  a 
way  she  could  not  understand,  her  heart  sank  within  her. 

But  she  saw  her  father  was  watching  her  and  knew  she 
must  act  skilfully  to  deceive  him.  Rallied  and  strengthen- 
ed by  the  generous  wine,  her  resolute  will  was  soon  on  its 
throne  again,  and  Mr.  Ludolph  with  all  his  keen  insight 
was  no  match  for  her.     In  a  matter-of-fact  tone  she  said ; 

"  I  do  not  see  how  we  have  worked  Mr.  Fleet  to  death. 
Does  he  charge  anything  of  the  kind  ?  " 

"  O  no  !  but  he  too  seems  possessed  with  the  idea  of 
becoming  an  artist.  That  drunken  old  Bruder,  whom  he 
appears  to  have  reformed,  was  giving  him  lessons,  and 
after  working  all  day  he  would  paint  all  night.  He  might 
have  made  something  if  he  had  had  a  judicious  friend  to 
guide  him,"  (and  such  you  might  have  been,  whispered 
her  conscience,)  "  but  now  he  drops  away  like  untimely 
fruit." 

"  It  is  a  pity,"  said  she  coolly,  and  changed  the  sub- 
ject as  if  she  had  dismissed  it  from  her  mind. , 

Mr  Ludolph  believed  Dennis  to  be  no  more  to  his 
daughter  than  a  useful  clerk. 

The  next  morning  Christine  rose  pale  and  listless. 

Her  father  said,  "  I  will  arrange  my  business  so  that 
JVC  can  go  off  on  a  trip  in  a  few  days." 

When  left  alone  she  sat  down  at  her  easel  and  tried  to 
restore  the  expression  that  had  so  delighted  her  on  the  pre- 
ceding day.     But  she  could  not.     Indeed  she  was  greatly 


THE  TWO  nClURES.  307 

vexed  to  find  that  her  tendency  was  to  paii  t  his  stern  and 
scornful  expression,  which  had  made  a  deeper  impression 
on  her  mind  than  any  she  had  ever  seen  on  his  face, 
because  so  unexpected  and  novel.  She  became  irritated 
with  herself,  and  cried  fiercely : 

"  Shame  on  your  weakness.  You  are  unworthy  of 
your  blood  and  ancestry.  I  will  reproduce  that  face  as  it 
was  before  he  so  insolently  destroyed  it,"  and  she  bent 
over  her  easel  with  an  expression  anything  but  in  harmony 
with  her  work.  Unconsciously  she  made  a  strange  con- 
trast, with  her  severe,  hard  face  and  compressed  lips,  to 
the  look  of  love  and  pleading  she  sought  to  paint.  For 
several  days  she  wrought  with  resolute  purpose,  but  found 
that  her  inspiration  was  gone.  At  last  she  threw  down 
her  brush  in  despair,  and  cried : 

"I  cannot  catch  it  again,  the  wretch  either  smiles  or 
frowns  upon  me.  I  fear  he  was  right,  I  have  made  my 
first  and  last  success,"  and  she  leaned  her  head  sullenly 
and  despairingly  on  her  hand.  Again  the  whole  scene 
passed  before  her,  and  she  dwelt  upon  every  word,  as  she 
was  beginning  often  to  do  now,  in  painful  revery.  When 
she  came  to  the  words,  "  I  too  mean  to  be  an  artist.  At 
the  store  I  could  show  you  a  picture  that  would  tell  you 
far  more  of  what  I  mean  than  can  my  poor  words,"  she 
started  up,  and  hastily  arraying  herself  for  the  street,  was 
soon  on  her  way  to  the  Art  Building. 

No  one  heeded  he?  movements  there,  and  she  went 
directly  upstairs  to  his  room.  Though  so  simple  and 
plain,  it  had  unmistakably  been  the  abode  of  a  gentleman 
and  a  person  of  taste.  It  was  partially  dismantled,  and  in 
disorder  from  his  hasty  departure,  and  she  found  nothing 
which  satisfied  her  quest  there.  She  hastened  away,  glad 
to  escape  from  a  place  wherQ.  everything  seemed  full  of 
mute  reproach,  and  next  bent  her  steps  to  the  top  floor  of 


3o8  BARRIERS  BURNED   AWAY. 

the  building.  In  a  part  half-filled  with  antiquated  lumber, 
and  seldom  entered,  she  saw  near  a  window  facing  the 
east  an  easel  with  canvas  upon  it.  She  was  startled  at 
the  throbbing  of  her  heart. 

"  It  is  only  climbing  these  long  stairs,"  she  said,  but 
any  one  would  ha-^je  seen  that  this  was  not  all,  from  the 
hesitating  manner  and  eager  face  with  which  she  approached 
and  removed  the  covering  from  the  canvas. 

She  gazed  a  moment  and  then  put  out  her  hands  for 
something  by  which  to  steady  herself.  His  chair  was  near 
and  she  sank  in  that,  exclaiming  : 

"  He  has  indeed  painted  more  than  ht — more  than  any 
one  could  put  in  words.  He  has  the  genius  that  I  have 
not.  All  here  is  striking  and  original,"  and  she  sat  with 
her  eyes  riveted  to  a  painting  that  had  revealed  to  her — 
herself. 

Here  was  the  secret  of  Dennis'  midnight  toil  and 
early  work.  Here  the  results  of  his  insatiable  demand  for 
the  incongruous  elements  of  ice  and  sunlight. 

Side  by  side  were  two  emblematic  pictures.  In  the 
first  there  opened  before  Christine  a  grotto  of  ice.  The 
light  was  thin  and  cold  but  very  clear  and  distinct,  stalac- 
tites hung  glittering  from  the  vaulted  roof.  Stalagmites 
in  strange  fantastic  forms  rose  to  meet  them.  There  was 
a  vivid  brightness  and  beauty  on  every  side,  but  of  that 
kind  that  threw  a  chill  on  the  eye  of  the  beholder.  All 
was  of  cold  blue  ice,  and  so  natural  was  it  that  the  eye 
seemed  to  penetrate  its  clear  crystal.  To  the  right  was  an 
opening  in  the  grotto,  through  which  was  caught  a  glimpse 
of  a  summer  landscape,  a  vivid  contrast  to  the  icy  cave. 

But  the  main  features  of  the  picture  were  two  figures, 
SleejDing  on  a  couch  of  ice  was  the  form  of  a  maiden. 
The  flow  of  the  drapery,  the  contour  of  the  form,  was  grace 
itself,  and  yet  all  was  ice.     But  the  face  was  the  most 


THE  TWO  PICTURES  309 

wonderful  achievement.  Christine  saw  her  own  features, 
as  beautiful  as  in  her  vainest  moments  she  had  ever  dared 
to  hope.  So  perfect  was  the  portrait  that  the  delicate  blue 
veins  branched  across  the  temple  in  veiled  distinctness. 
I  was  a  face  that  lacked  but  two  things,  life  and  love ; 
and  yet  with  all  its  beauty  the  want  of  these  was  painfully 
felt — all  the  more  painfully,  even  as  a  lovely  face  in  death 
twakens  a  deeper  sadness  and  regret. 

One  little  icyhand  grasped  a  laurel  wreath,  also  of  ice. 
The  other  hand  hung  listless,  half  open  down  the  couch, 
and  from  it  had  dropped  a  brush  that  formed  a  small 
stalagmite  at  her  side. 

Bending  over  her  in  a  most  striking  contrast  is  the 
figure  of  a  young  man,  all  instinct  with  life,  power,  and 
feeling.  Though  the  face  was  turned  away,  Dennis  had 
suggested  his  own  form  and  manner.  His  left  hand  was 
extended  toward  the  sleeping  maiden,  as  if  to  awaken  her, 
while  with  the  right  he  pointed  toward  the  opening  through 
which  was  seen  the  summer  landscape,  and  his  whole  atti- 
tude indicated  an  eager  wish  to  rescue  her.  This  was  the 
first  picture. 

The  second  one  was  still  more  suggestive.  At  the  en- 
trance of  the  grotto,  which  looked  more  cold  than  ever,  in 
its  partial  shadow,  Christine  saw  herself  again,  but  how 
changed !  She  now  had  a  beauty  which  she  could  not 
believe  in — could  not  understand. 

The  cold  icy  hue  and  rigidity  were  all  gone.  She  stood 
in  the  warm  sunlight,  and  seenred  all  warmth  and  life  to  her- 
self Her  face  glowed  with  feeling,  yet  was  full  of  peace. 
Instead  of  the  barren  ice,  flowers  bloomed  at  her  feet 
and  fruitful  trees  bent  over  her.  Birds  were  seen  flitting 
through  their  branches.  Their  bended  tops,  her  flowing 
costume,  and  the  tress  of  golden  hair  lifted  from  her  temple, 
all  showed  that  the  summer  wind  was  blowing. 

T4 


3IO 


Barriers  burned  away. 


Everything,  in  contrast  with  the  frozen,  death- like  cave, 
indicated  life,  activity.  Near  where  she  stood,  a  plane-tree, 
which  in  nature's  language  is  the  emblem  of  genius,  tow- 
ered into  the  sky.  Around  its  trunk  twined  the  passion- 
flower, meaning  in  Flora's  tongue,  "  Holy  love  ;  "  while  just 
above  her  head,  sipping  the  nectar  from  an  open  blossom, 
was  a  bright-hued  butterfly,  the  symbol  of  immortality.  By 
her  side  stood  the  same  tall,  manly  form,  with  face  still 
averted,  that  was  in  the  act  of  awakening  her  in  the  first 
picture.  He  was  pointing,  and  her  eyes,  softened,  and  yet 
so  lustrous  and  happy,  were  following  where  a  path  wound 
through  a  long  vista,  in  alternate  light  and  shadow,  to  a 
gate,  that  in  the  distance  looked  like  a  pearl.  Above  and 
beyond  it,  in  airy  outline,  rose  the  walls  and  towers  of  the 
Holy  City,  the  New  Jerusalem. 

For  a  long  time  she  sat  in  rapt  attention — moment  by 
moment  the  paintings  in  their  meaning  grew  upon  her.  Ai 
last  her  eyes  filled  with  tears,  her  bosom  rose  and  fell  with 
an  excitement  and  emotion  in  her  case  most  unwonted,  and 
in  low  tones  she  murmured  : 

"  Heavenly  delusion  !  and  taught  with  the  logic  I  mosl 
dearly  love.  O  that  I  could  believe  it !  I  would  give  ten 
thousand  years  of  the  life  I  am  leading  to  know  that  it  is 
true.  Is  there,  can  there  be  a  path  that  leads  through  light 
or  shade  to  a  final  and  heavenly  home  ?  If  this  is  true,  in 
spite  of  all  my  father's  keen  and  seemingly  convincing 
arguments,  what  a  terrible  mistake  our  life  is." 

Then  her  thoughts  reverted  to  the  author. 

"  What  have  I  done  in  driving  him  away  with  contempt 
in  his  heart  for  me  ?  I  can  affect  no  more  haughty  superi- 
ority to  the  man  who  painted  those  pictures.  Though  he 
could  not  be  my  lover,  what  a  friend  he  might  have  been. 
I  fear  I  shall  never  find  his  equal.  O  this  world  of  chaos 
and  confusion  !     What  is  right  ?     What  is  best .''      Whui  u 


THE  TWO  PICTURES. 


3»« 


truth  ?  He  might  have  taught  me.  But  the  skilful  hand 
that  portrayed  those  wonderful  scenes  may  soon  turn  to 
dust,  and  I  will  go  to  my  grave  burdened  with  the  thought 
that  I  have  quenched  the  brightest  genius  that  will  ever 
shine  upon  me,"  and  she  clasped  her  hands  m  an  agony  of 
regret. 

Then  came  the  thought  of  securing  the  pictures.  Drop- 
ping a  veil  over  her  red  eyes,  she  went  down  and  got  some 
large  sheets  of  paper,  and  by  fastening  them  together  made 
a  secure  covering.  Then  she  carried  the  light  frame  with 
the  canvas  to  the  second  floor,  and  summoning  Ernst 
started  homeward  with  her  treasure.  The  boy  obeyed  with 
reluctance.  Since  the  time  she  had  surprised  him  out  of 
his  secret  in  regard  to  the  strawberries  he  had  never  liked 
her,  and  now  he  felt  that  in  some  way  she  was  the  cause  of 
the  sickness  of  his  dearest  friend.  Christine  could  not  bear 
the  reproach  in  his  large,  truthful  eyes,  and  their  walk  was 
a  silent  one.  At  parting  she  handed  him  a  large  bill,  but 
he  shook  his  head. 

"  Have  you  heard  from  Mr.  Fleet  ? "  she  asked  with  a 
flush. 

The  boy's  lip  quivered  at  the  mention  of  that  name, 
and  he  answered  hastily: 

"  Fader  wrote  moder  he  was  no  better.  I  feai  he  die," 
and  in  an  agony  of  grief  he  turned  and  ran  sobbing  away. 

From  under  her  veil  Christine's  tears  were  faD»ng  fast 
also,  and  she  entered  her  elegant  home  as  if  it  ha<?  been  a 
prison. 


CHAPTER  XXXVL 

REGRET. 

The  next  day  was  the  Sabbath,  and  a  long,  dreary  one 
it  was  to  Christine.  But  late  in  the  afternoon  Susie  Win- 
♦h-op  came  with  a  pale,  troubled  face. 

"O  Christine,  have  you  heard  the  news?"  she  ex- 
claimed. 

Christine's  heart  stood  still  with  fear,  but  by  a  great 
effort  she  said  composedly : 

«^^^latnews?'' 

"  Mr.  Fleet  has  gone  home  very  ill ;  indeed  he  is  not 
expected  to  live." 

For  a  moment  she  did  not  answer,  and  when  she  did  it 
was  with  a  voice  unnaturally  hard  and  cold : 

"  Have  you  heard  what  is  the  matter?" 

Miss  Winthrop  wondered  at  her  manner,  but  replied : 

"  Brain  fever,  I  am  told." 

'*  Is  he  delirious  ? "  asked  Christine  in  a  low  tone. 

*•  Yes,  all  the  time.  Ernst,  the  littlfe  oflBce-boy,  told  me 
he  did  not  know  his  own  mother.  It  seems  that  the  boy's 
father  b  with  Mrs.  Fleet,  helping  take  care  of  him." 

Christine's  face  was  averted  and  so  colorless  that  it 
seemed  like  marble. 

'■  O  Christine,  don't  you  care  ?  "  said  Susie,  springing 
ap  and  coming  toward  her  friend. 

''  Whv  should  T  care  ? "  was  the  quick  answer. 

Susie  cou'.d  not  know  that  it  was  in  reality  but  an  in- 
coherent cry  of  ]:ai::.  :he  blind  desperate  effort  of  pride  to 


REGRET.  313 

shield  itself.     But  the  tone  Checked  her  steps  and  filled  her 
face  with  reproach. 

"  Perhaps  you  have  more  reason  to  care  than  you 
choose  to  admit,"  she  said  pointedly. 

Christine  flushed,  but  said  coldly  : 

"  Of  course  I  feel  an  interest  in  the  fate  of  Mr.  Fleet, 
as  I  do  in  that  of  every  passing  acquaintance.  I  feel  very 
sorry  for  him  and  his  friends."  But  never  was  sympathy 
expressed  in  a  voice  more  unnaturally  frigid. 

Susie  looked  at  her  keenly,  and  again  saw  the  tell-tale 
flush  rising  to  her  cheek.  She  was  puzzled,  but  saw  that 
her  friend  had  no  confidence  to  give,  and  she  said  with  a 
voice  growing  somewhat  cold  also  : 

"  Well  really,  Christine,  I  thought  you  capable  of  see- 
ing as  much  as  the  rest  of  us  in  such  matters,  but  I  must 
be  mistaken,  if  you  only  recognized  in  Dennis  Fleet  a  pass- 
ing acquaintance.  Well,  if  he  dies  I  doubt  if  either  you  or 
I  look  upon  his  equal  again.  Under  right  influences  he 
might  have  been  one  of  the  first  and  most  useful  men  of 
his  day.  But  they  need  not  tell  me  it  was  ovenvork  that 
killed  him.     I  know  it  was  trouble  of  some  kind." 

Christine  was  very  pale,  but  said  nothing ;  and  Susie, 
pained  and  mystified  that  the  confidence  of  other  days 
was  refused,  bade  rather  a  cold  and  abrupt  adieu. 

Left  alone,  Christine  bowed  her  white  face  in  her  hand? 
and  sat  so  still  that  it  seemed  as  if  life  had  deserted  her. 
In  her  morbid  state  she  began  to  fancy  herself  the  victim 
of  some  terrible  fatality.  Her  heart  had  bounded  at  the 
announcement  of  Susie  Winthrop,  believing  that  fi-om  her 
she  would  gain  s)Tnpathy,  but  in  strange  perverseness  she 
had  hidden  her  trouble  from  her  friend,  and  permitted  her 
to  go  away  in  coldness.  Christine  could  see  as  quickly 
and  as  far  as  any,  and  from  the  first  had  noted  that  Dennis 
was  very  interesting  to  her  friend.     Until  of  late  she  had 


314 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


not  cared,  but  now  for  some  reason  the  fact  was  nc".  pleas- 
ing, and  she  felt  a  sudden  reluctance  to  speak  to  Susie  of 
him. 

But  now  that  she  was  gone  a  deeper  sense  of  loneliness 

and  isolation  came  over  her  than  she  had  ever  felt  before. 
Her  one  confidential  friend  had  departed,  chilled  and  hurt. 
She  made  friends  but  slowly,  and  having  once  become 
estranged,  from  her  very  nature,  she  found  it  almost  im- 
possible to  offer  the  first  advances  towards  reconciliation. 

Soon  she  heard  her  father's  steps,  and  fled  to  her  room 
to  nerve  herself  for  the  part  she  must  act  before  him.  But 
she  was  far  from  successful ;  her  pale  face  and  preoccu- 
pied manner  awakened  his  attention  and  surmises  as  to 
the  cause.  Having  an  engagement  out,  he  soon  left  her  to 
welcome  solitude  •  for  when  she  was  in  trouble  he  was  no 
source  of  help  or  comfort. 

Monday  dragged  wearily  to  a  close.  She  tried  to  work 
but  could  not  She  took  up  the  most  exciting  book  she 
could  find,  only  to  throw  it  down  in  despair.  For  ever  be- 
tween the  canvas  or  the  page  would  rise  a  pale  thin  face,  at 
times  stern  and  scornful,  again  full  of  reproach,  and  then  of 
pleading. 

Even  at  night  her  rest  was  disturbed,  and  in  dreams 
she  heard  the  mutterings  of  his  delirium,  in  which  he  con- 
tinually charged  her  with  his  death.  At  times  she  would 
get  out  his  picture  and  look  at  it  as  one  might  some  price- 
less thing  past  and  gone  beyond  reach  forever.  Then  she 
would  become  irritated  with  herself,  and  say  angrily : 

'•  What  is  this  man  to  me  .''  Why  am  I  worrying  about 
one  who  never  could  be  much  more  to  me  living  than  dead  } 
Forget  the  whole  miserable  aftair." 

But  she  could  not  forget.  Tuesday  morning,  but  no  re- 
lief "  Whether  he  lives  or  dies  he  v.ill  follow  me  to  my 
grave  !"  she  cried.     "  From  the  time  I  first  spoke  to  him 


REGRET. 


315 


there  has  seemed  no  escape,  and  in  strange  unexpected 
ways  he  constantly  crosses  my  path  ! " 

She  felt  that  she  must  get  some  relief  from  the  oppres- 
sion on  her  spirit.  Suddenly  she  thought  of  Ernst,  and  at 
once  went  to  the  store  and  asked  if  he  had  heard  anything 
later.  He  had  not,  but  thought  that  his  mother  would  get 
a  letter  that  day. 

"  I  want  to  see  your  father's  picture,  and  will  go  home 
that  way,  if  you  will  give  me  the  number." 

The  boy  hesitated,  but  at  last  complied  with  her  wish. 

A  little  later  Christine  knocked  at  Mr.  Bruder's  door. 
There  was  no  response,  though  she  heard  a  stifled  sound 
within.  After  a  little  she  knocked  more  loudly.  Then  the 
door  slowly  opened,  and  Mrs.  Bruder  stood  before  her* 
Her  eyes  were  very  red,  and  she  held  in  her  hand  an  open 
letter.  Christine  expected  to  find  more  of  a  lady  than  was 
apparent  at  first  glance  in  the  hard-working  woman  before 
her,  so  she  said  : 

■  "  My  good  woman,  will  you  tell  Mrs.  Bruder  I  would 
like  to  see  her." 

"  Dis  is  Mrs.  Bruder,"  was  the  answer. 

Then  Christine  noticed  the  letter,  and  the  half-effaced 
traces  of  emotion,  and  her  heart  misgave  her,  but  she  nerved 
herself  to  say :   "  I  came  to  see  your  husband's  picture." 

"  It  is  dare,"  was  the  brief  reply. 

Christine  commenced  expatiating  on  its  beauty,  though 
perhaps  for  the  first  time  she  looked  at  a  fine  picture  with- 
out really  seeing  it.  She  was  at  a  loss  how  to  introduce 
the  object  of  her  visit,  but  at  last  said : 

"  Your  husband  is  away  ? " 

«  Yes." 

"  He  is  taking  care  of  one  of  my  father's — of  Mr.  Fleet, 
1  am  told.  Have  you  heard  from  him  as  to  Mr.  Fleet's 
health  ? " 


3l6  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  Dis  is  Miss  Ludolph  ? " 

«  Yes." 

"  You  can  no  read  Sherman  ? " 

*•  O  yes  I  can.     German  is  my  native  tongue." 

"  Strange  that  him  should  be  so." 

"  Why  so  ?  " 

"  De  Shermans  haf  hearts." 

Christine  flushed  deeply,  but  Mrs.  Bruder  without  a 
word  put  her  husband's  letter  in  her  hand,  and  Christine 
read  eagerly  what,  translated,  is  as  follows : 

"  My  dear  Wife  : — Perhaps  before  this  reaches  you, 
our  best  friend,  our  human  saviour,  will  be  in  heaven.  There 
is  a  heaven,  I  believe  as  I  never  did  before ;  and  when 
Mrs.  Fleet  prays  the  gate  seems  to  open,  and  the  glory  to 
stream  right  down  upon  us.  But  I  fear  now  that  not  even 
her  prayers  can  keep  him.  Only  once  he  knew  her;  then 
he  smiled  and  said,  "  Mother,  it  is  all  right,"  and  dropped 
asleep.  Soon  fever  came  on  again,  and  he  is  sinking  fast. 
The  doctor  shakes  his  head  and  gives  no  hope.  My  heart 
is  breaking.  Marguerite,  Mr.  Fleet  is  not  dying  a  natural 
death  ;  he  has  been  slain.  I  understand  all  his  manner 
now,  ail  his  desperate  hard  work.  He  loved  one  above 
him  in  wealth — none  could  be  above  him  in  other  respects 
— and  that  one  was  Miss  Ludolph.  I  suspected  it,  though, 
till  delirious,  he  scarcely  ever  mentioned  her  name.  But 
now  I  believe  she  played  with  his  heart — the  noblest  that 
ever  beat — and  then  threw  it  away,  as  it  were  a  toy  instead 
of  the  richest  offering  ever  made  to  a  woman.  Proud  fool 
that  she  was;  she  had  done  more  mischief  than  a  thousand 
*uc.h  fri\'olous  lives  as  hers  can  atone  for.  I  can  write  no 
more — my  heart  is  breaking  with  grief  and  indignation." 

As  Christine  read  she  suffered  her  veil  to  drop  over  her 
face.     When  she  looked  up  she  saw  Mrs.   Bruder  regard- 


REGRET. 


317 


ing  her  as  she  might  one  who  had  murdered  her  best 
friend.  She  drew  her  veil  closer  about  her  face,  laid  the 
letter  down,  and  left  the  room  without  a  word.  She  felt  so 
guilty  and  miserable  on  her  way  home  :hat  it  would  scarcely 
have  surprised  her  had  a  policeman  arrested  her  for  the 
crime  with  which  her  own  conscience  as  well  as  Mr.  Bruder's 
letter  charged  her ;  and  yet  her  pride  revolted  at  it  all. 

*'  Why  should  this  affair  take  so  miserable  a  form  with 
me  ?  "  she  said.  "  To  most  it  ends  with  a  few  sentimental 
sighs  on  one  side,  and  as  a  good  joke  on  the  other.  All 
seems  to  go  wrong  of  late,  and  I  am  destined  to  have 
everything  save  happiness  and  the  success  upon  which  I 
set  my  heart.  There  is  no  more  cruel  mockery  than  to  give 
one  all  save  the  very  thing  one  wants,  and  in  seeking  to 
grasp  that  I  have  brought  down  upon  myself  this  wretched 
blighting  experience.  O  this  chaotic  world !  The  idea 
of  there  being  a  God  !  Why  I  could  make  a  better  world 
myself!"  And  she  reached  her  home  in  such  a  morbid, 
unhappy  state,  that  none  in  the  great  city  need  have  envied 
the  rich  and  flattered  girl.  Mechanically  she  dressed  and 
came  down  to  dinner. 

During  the  afternoon  Ernst,  while  out  on  an  errand, 
had  slipped  home  and  heard  the  sad  news.  He  returned 
to  Mr.  Ludolph's  office  crying.  To  the  question,  "  What 
is  the  matter  ? "  he  had  answered : 

"  O,  Mr.  Fleet  is  dying — he  is  dead  by  dis  time  !  " 

Mr.  Ludolph  was  sadly  shocked  and  pained,  for  as  far 
as  he  could  like  anybody  in  addition  to  himself  and 
daughter,  he  had  been  prepossessed  in  favor  of  his  useful 
and  intelligent  clerk,  and  he  was  greatly  annoyed  at  tlie 
thought  of  losing  him.  He  returned  full  of  the  subject, 
and  the  first  words  with  which  he  greeted  Christine  were  : 

"  Well,  Fleet  will  hang  no  more  pictures  for  you,  and 
sing  no  more  songs." 

14* 


jlS  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

She  Staggered  into  a  chair  and  sat  before  him  pale 
and  panting,  for  she  thought  he  meant  that  death  had 
taken  place. 

"  Why,  what  is  the  matter  ? '    cried  he. 

She  stared  at  him  gaspingly,  but  said  nothing. 

"  Here,  drink  his."  he  said,  hastily  pouring  out  a  glass 
of  wine. 

She  took  it  eagerly.     After  a  moment  he  said : 

"  Christine,  I  do  not  understand  all  this.  I  was  merely 
saying  that  my  clerk,  Mr.  Fleet,  was  not  expected — " 

The  point  of  endurance  and  guarded  Self-control  was 
past,  and  she  cried  half  hysterically : 

"  Am  I  never  to  escape  that  man  ?  Must  every  one  I 
meet  speak  to  me  as  if  I  had  murdered  him  ?  " 

Then  she  added,  almost  fiercely : 

"  Living  or  dead,  never  speak  to  me  of  him  again  !  I 
am  no  longer  a  child,  but  a  woman,  and  as  such  I  insist 
that  his  name  be  dropped  between  us  forever  !  " 

Her  father  gave  a  low  exclamation  of  surprise,  and 
said: 

"  What !  was  he  one  of  the  victims  ?  "  (this  being  his 
term  for  Christine's  rejected  suitors.) 

"  No,"  said  she,  "  I  am  the  victim.  He  will  soon  be  at 
rest,  while  I  shall  be  tormented  to  the  grave  by — "  She 
hardly  knew  what  to  say,  so  mingled  and  chaotic  were  her 
feelings.  Her  hands  clenched,  and  with  a  stamp  of  her 
foot  she  hastily  left  the  room. 

Mr.  Ludolph  could  hardly  believe  his  eyes.  Could  this 
passionate,  thoroughly  aroused  woman  be  his  cold,  self- 
contained  daughter  ?  He  could  not  understand,  a?  so 
many  cannot,  that  such  natures  when  aroused  are  tenfold 
more  intense  than  those  whom  little  things  excite.  A  long 
and  peculiar  train  of  circumstances,  a  morbid  and  over- 
wrought   physical    condition,    led    to    this    outburst   from 


REGRET.  •  319 

rhristine,  which  was  as  much  a  cause  of  surprise  to  herself 
afterward  as  to  her  father.  He  judged  correctly  that  a 
great  dea!  had  occurred  between  Dennis  and  herself  of 
which  he  had  no  knowledge,  and  again  his  confidence  in 
her  was  thoroughly  shaken. 

At  first  he  determined  to  question  and  extort  from  hei 
the  truth.  But  when,  an  hour  later,  she  quietFy  entered  the 
parlor,  he  saw  at  a  glance  that  he  could  not  treat  the  cold, 
proud,  self-possessed  woman  before  him  as  he  might  the 
little  Christine  of  former  days.  The  wily  ma«  read  from 
her  manner  and  the  expression  of  her  eye  that  he  might 
with  her  consent  lead,  but  could  not  command  without 
awakening  a  nature  as  imperious  as  his  own. 

He  was  ^.ngry,  but  he  had  time  to  think.  Prudence 
had  given  a  decided  voice  in  the  way  of  warj'  caution. 

He  saw  what  she  did  not  recognize  herself,  that  her 
heart  had  been  greatly  touched,  and  in  his  secret  soul  he 
was  not  sorry  now  to  believe  that  Dennis  was  dying. 

"  Father,"  said  Christine  abruptly,  "  how  soon  can  we 
start  on  our  trip  East  ? " 

"Well,  if  you  particularly  wish  it,"  he  replied,  "I  can 
leave  by  the  evening  train  to-morrow." 

"  I  do  wish  it  very  much,"  said  Christine  earnestly, 
"  and  will  be  ready." 

After  a  silent,  stifi"  evening,  they  separated  for  the  night. 

Mr.  Ludolph  sat  for  a  long  time  sipping  his  wine  after 
she  had  gone. 

"After  all  it  will  turn  out  for  the  best,"  he  said. 
"  Fleet  ^^  ill  probably  die,  and  then  will  be  out  of  the  way. 
Or,  if  he  lives,  I  can  easily  guard  against  him,  and  it  will 
go  no  further.  If  she  had  been  bewitched  by  a  man  like 
Mr.  Mellen,  the  matter  would  have  been  more  difficult. 

"In  truth,"  he  continued  after  a  little,  "now  that  hei 
weak  woman's  heart  is  occupied  by  an  impossible  lover 


3ao  '  BAPRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

there  is  no  danger  from  possible  ones,"  and  the  man  of 
the  world  went  complacently  to  his  rest,  believing  that 
what  he  regarded  as  the  game  of  life  was  entirely  in  his 
own  hands. 

The  next  evening  the  night  express  bore  Christine 
from  the  events  she  sought  to  escape ;  but  she  was  to 
learn,  in  common  with  the  great  host  of  the  sinning  and 
suffering,  how  little  change  of  place  has  to  do  with  change 
of  feeling. 

We  take  memory  and  character  with  us  from  land  to 
land,  from  youth  to  age,  from  this  world  to  the  other,  from 
time  through  eternity.  Sad,  then,  is  the  lot  of  those  who 
ever  carry  the  elements  of  their  own  torture  with  them. 

It  was  Christine's  purpose,  and  she  had  her  father's 
consent,  to  make  a  long  visit  in  New  York,  and,  in  the 
gayety  and  excitement  of  the  metropolis,  to  forget  her 
late  wretched  experience. 

As  it  was  still  early  September,  they  resolved  to  stop 
at  West  Point  and  participate  in  the  gayest  season 
of  that  fashionable  watering-place.  At  this  time  the 
hotels  are  thronged  with  summer  tourists  returning  home- 
ward from  the  more  northern  resorts.  Though  the  broad 
piazzas  of  Cozzens'  great  hotel  were  crowded  by  the  elite 
of  the  city,  there  was  a  hum  of  admiration  as  Christine 
first  made  her  round,  on  her  father's  arm  ;  and  in  the 
evening,  when  the  spacious  parlor  was  cleared  for  dancing, 
officers  from  the  post  and  civilians  alike  eagerly  sought 
her  hand,  and  hundreds  of  admiring  eyes  followed  as  she 
swept  through  the  mazes  of  the  dance,  the  very  embodi- 
ment of  grace  and  beauty.  She  was  very  gay,  and  her 
repartee  was  often  brilliant,  but  a  close  observer  would 
have  seen  something  forced  and  unnatural  in  all.  Sm  h 
an  observer  was  her  father.  He  saw  that  the  sparkle  of 
her  eyes  had  no  more   heart  and  happiness  in  it  than  that 


REGRET. 


321 


of  the  diamonds  on  her  bosom,  and  that  with  the  whole 
strength  of  her  resolute  nature  she  was  laboring  to  repel 
thought  and.  memory.  But  as  he  witnessed  the  admira- 
tion she  excited  on  every  side,  he  became  rriore  determined 
than  ever  that  his  fair  daughter  should  shine  a  star  of  the 
first  magnitude  in  the  salons  of  Europe.  Late,  and  wea- 
ried past  the  power  of  thought,  she  gladly  sought  refuge  in 
the  blank  of  sleep. 

The  next  morning  they  drove  out  early,  before  the  sun 
grew  high  and  warm.  It  was  a  glorious  Autumn  day.  Recent 
rains  had  purified  the  atmosphere,  so  that  the  unrivalled 
scenery  of  the  Hudson  stood  out  in  clear  and  grand  outline. 

As  Christine  looked  about  her  she  felt  a  thrill  of  almost 
delight;  the  first  sensations  of  the  kind  since  that  moment 
of  triumph  and  exultation  which  Dennis  had  inspired,  but 
which  he  had  also  turned  to  the  bitterness  of  disaster  and 
humiliation.  She  was  keenly  alive  to  beauty,  and  she  saw 
it  on  every  side. 

The  Ludolph   family  had  ever  lived  among  the  moun- 
tains on  the  Rhine,  and  the  heart  of  this  latest  child  of  the 
race    yearned  with  hereditar}'  affection  over  the   rugged  • 
scenery  before  her,  which  had  grown  stronger  with  each 
successive  generation. 

The  dew,  like  innumerable  pearls,  gemmed  the  grass  in 
the  park-like  lawn  of  the  hotel,  and  the  slanting  rays  of  the 
sun  flecked  the  luxuriant  foliage.  Never  before  had  this 
passion  for  the  beautifiil  in  nature  been  so  gratified,  and 
all  the  artist  feeling  within  her  awoke. 

When  out  upon  the  street  the  carriage  turned  south- 
ward, and  after  passing  the  village  of  Highland  Falls,  ihey 
entered  on  one  of  the  most  beautiful  drives  in  America. 
At  times  the  road  led  under  overarching  forest  trees,  shaded 
and  dim  with  that  delicious  twilight  which  only  myriads  of 
fluttering  leaves  can  make. 


S32 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


Again  it  would  wind  around  some  bold  headland,  and 
the  broad  expanse  of  the  Hudson  would  shine  out  dotted 
with  white  sails.  Then  through  a  vista  its  waters  would 
sparkle,  suggesting  an  exquisite  cabinet  picture.  On  the 
right  the  thickly-wooded  mountains  rose  like  emerald  walls, 
with  here  and  there  along  their  base  a  quiet  farm-house. 
With  kindling  eye  and  glowing  cheeks  she  drank  in  view 
after  view,  and  at  last  exclaimed  : 

"  If  there  were  only  a  few  old  castles  scattered  among 
these  Highlands,  this  would  be  the .  very  perfection  of 
scenery." 

Her  father  watched  her  closely,  and  with  much  satis- 
faction. 

"  After  all,  her  wound  is  slight,"  he  thought,  "  and  new 
scenes  and  circumstances  will  soon  cause  her  to  forget." 

Furtively,  but  continually,  he  bent  his  eyes  upon  her, 
as  if  to  read  her  very  soul.  A  dreamy,  happy  expression 
rested  on  her  face,  as  if  a  scene  were  present  to  her  fancy 
even  more  to  her  taste  than  the  one  her  eyes  rested  upon. 
In  fact  she  was  living  over  that  evening  at  Miss  Winthrop's, 
when  Dennis  told  her  that  she  could  reach  truest  and  high- 
est art — that  she  could  feel — could  copy  anything  she  saw; 
and  exhilarated  by  the  fresh  morning  air,  inspired  by  the 
scenery,  she  felt  for  the  moment  as  never  before  that  it 
might  all  be  true. 

Was  he  who  gave  those  blissful  assurances  also  exerting 
a  subtle,  unrecognized  power  over  her?  Certainly  within 
the  last  few  weeks  she  had  been  subject  to  strange  moods 
and  reveries.  But  the  first  dawning  of  a  woman's  love  is 
more  like  the  aurora  with  its  strange  fitful  flashes.  The 
phenomena  have  never  been  satisfactorily  explained. 

But  as  Mr.  Ludolph  watched  complacently  and  admir- 
ingly, her  expression  suddenly  changed,  and  a  frightened, 
guilty  look  came  into  her  face.     The  glow  upon  her  cheeks 


KFCRTT. 


323 


gave  place  to  extreme  pallor,  and  she  glanced  nervously 
around  as  if  fearing  something,  then  caught  her  father's  eye, 
and  was  conscious  of  his  scrutiny.  She  at  once  became 
cold  and  self-possessed,  and  sat  at  his  side  pale  and  quiet 
till  the  ride  ended.  But  he  saw  from  the  troubled  gleam 
of  her  eyes  that  there  was  tumult  and  suffering  beneath  that 
calm  exterior. 

Few  in  this  life  are  so  guilty  and  wretched  as  not  to 
have  moments  of  forgetfulness,  when  the  happier  past 
comes  back  and  they  are  oblivious  to  the  painful  present. 
Such  a  brief  respite  Christine  enjoyed  during  part  of  her 
morning  ride.  The  grand  and  swiftly  varying  scenery 
crowded  her  mind  with  pleasant  images,  and  all  had  ended 
in  a  delicious  revery.  She  felt  herself  to  be  a  true  priest- 
ess of  nature,  capable  of  understanding  and  interpreting 
her  voices  and  hidden  meanings — of  catching  her  evanes- 
cent beauty  and  of  fixing  it  on  the  glowing  canvas.  The 
strongly  felt  consciousness  of  such  power  was  indeed  sweet 
and  intoxicating.  Her  mind  naturally  reverted  to  him  who 
had  most  clearly  asserted  her  possession  of  it. 

"  He,  too,  would  have  equal  appreciation  of  this 
scenery,"  she  said  to  herself. 

Then  came  the  sudden  remembrance,  shrivelling  her 
■  pretty  dreams  as  the  lightnim^scorches  and  withers. 

"  He — he  is  dead! — he  must  be  by  this  time!  " 

And  dread  and  guilt  and  something  else  that  she  did 
not  define,  but  which  seemed  more  like  a  sense  of  great 
loss,  lay  heavy  at  her  heart.  No  wonder  her  father  was 
perplexed  and  provoked  by  the  sad  change  in  her  face. 
At  first  he  was  incHned  to  remonstrate  and  put  spurs  to 
hei  pride.  But  there  was  a  dignity  about  the  lady  at  his 
side,  even  though  she  was  his  daughter,  that  embarrassed 
and  restrained  him.  Moreover,  though  he  understood 
much  and  suspected  far  more — more  indeed  than  the  truth 


324 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


— there  was  nothing  acknowledged  or  tangible  that  he 
could  lay  hold  of,  and  she  meant  that  there  should  not  be. 
For  reasons  she  did  not  understand  she  felt  a  disincHnaiion 
to  tell  her  troubles  to  Susie  Winthrop,  and  she  was  most 
resolute  in  her  purpose  never  to  permit  her  father  to  speak 
on  the  subject. 

If  Mr.  Ludolph  had  been  as  coarse  and  ignorant  as  he 
w-as  hard  and  selfish,  he  would  have  gone  to  work  at  the 
case  with  sledge  and  hammer  dexterity,  as  many  a  parent 
has,  making  sad  brutal  havoc  in  delicate  womanly  natures 
with  which  they  were  no  more  fit  to  deal  than  a  blacksmith 
with  hair-springs.  But  though  he  longed  to  speak  and 
bring  his  remorseless  logic  to  bear,  Christine's  manner 
raised  a  barrier  which  a  man  of  his  fine  culture  could  not 
readily  pass. 

She  joined  her  father  at  a  late  breakfast  smiling  and 
brilliant,  but  all  was  clearly  forced.  The  morning  was 
spent  in  sketching,  she  seeming  to  crave  constant  occupa- 
tion or  excitement. 

In  the  afternoon  they  drove  up  the  river  to  the  military 
grounds  to  witness  a  drill.  Her  father  did  his  best  to  rally 
her,  pointing  out  ever)^thing  of  interest.  First,  the  grand 
old  ruin  of  Fort  Putnam  frowned  down  upon  them.  This 
had  been  the  one  feature  wai||ing,  and  Christine  felt  that 
she  could  ask  nothing  more.  Her  wonder  and  admiration 
grew  as  the  road  wound  along  the  immediate  bluff  and 
around  the  plain  by  the  river  fortifications.  Put  when  she 
stood  on  the  piazza  of  the  West  Point  Hotel  and  looked 
up  through  the  Highlands  towards  Newburgh,  tears  came 
i;ven  to  her  eyes,  and  she  trembled  with  excitement. 
From  what  had  happened  her  nerves  were  morbidly  sensi- 
li\e.  But  her  father  could  only  look  and  wonder,  she 
seemed  so  chanLcecl  to  him. 

"  And  is  the  Rhine  likf»  this  ?  "'  she  asked. 


REGRE'l. 


3^5 


"  Well,  the  best  I  can  say  is,  that  to  a  German  and  a 
Ludolph,  it  seems  just  as  beautiful,"  he  replied. 

"  Surely,"  said  she  slowly  and  in  half  soliloquy,  **  if  one 
could  live  always  amid  such  scenes  as  these,  elysium  of  ihe 
gods  or  the  heaven  of  the  Christians  would  offer  few  lemp 
lations." 

"And  among  just  such  scenes  you  shall  ive  after  a 
short  year  passes,"  he  answered  warmly  and  confidently. 
But  with  anger  he  missed  the  wonted  sparkle  of  her  eyes 
when  these  cherished  plans  were  broached. 

In  bitterness  Christine  said  to  herself:  "  A  few  weeks 
since  this  thought  would  have  filled  me  with  delight.  Why 
does  it  not  now?" 

Silently  they  drove  to  the  parade-ground.  At  the  sally 
port  of  the  distant  barracks  bayonets  were  gleaming. 
There  was  a  burst  of  martial  music,  then  each  class  at  the 
Academy — four  companies — came  out  upon  the  grassy 
plain  upon  the  double-quick.  Their  motions  were  light 
and  swift,  and  yet  so  accurately  timed  that  each  company 
seemed  one  perfect  piece  of  mechanism.  A  cadet  stood  at 
a  certain  point  with  a  small  color  flying.  Abreast  of  this 
their  advance  was  checked  as  suddenly  as  if  they  had  been 
turned  to  stone,  and  the  entire  corps  was  in  line.  Then 
followed  a  series  of  skilful  manoeuvres,  in  which  Christine 
was  much  interested,  and  her  old  eager  manner  returned. 

"  I  l:ke  the  army,"  she  exclaimed ;  "  the  precision  and 
inflexible  routine  would  just  suit  me.  I  wish  there  was 
war,  and  I  a  man,  that  I  might  enter  into  the  glorious 
excitements." 

Luxurious  Mr.  Ludolph  had  no  tastes  that  way,  and, 
shrugging  his  shoulders,  said : 

"  How  about  the  hardships,  wounds,  and  chances  of  an 
obscure  death  ?  These  are  the  rule  in  a  campaign — ibo 
glorious  excitements  the  exceptions." 


326  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  I  did  not  think  of  those,"  she  said,  shrinking  against 
the  cushions.  "  Everything  seems  to  have  so  many  misera- 
ble drawbacks." 

The  pageantry  over,  the  driver  turned  and  drove  north- 
waid  through  the  most  superb  scenery. 

"Where  are  we  going?"  asked  Christine. 

"  To  the  cemetery,"  was  the  reply. 

"  No,  no  !  not  there  !  "  she  exclaimed  nervously. 

"  Nonsense !     Why  not  ?  "  remonstrated  her  father. 

"  I  don't  wish  to  go  there ! "  she  cried  excitedly.  "  Please 
turn  around." 

Her  father  reluctantly  gave  the  order,  but  added  : 

"  Christine,  you  certainly  indulge  in  strange  moods  and 
whims  of  late." 

She  was  silent  a  moment,  and  then  commenced  a  run- 
ning fire  of  questions  about  the  Academy,  that  left  no  space 
for  explanations. 

That  evening  she  danced  aS  resolutely  as  ever,  and  by 
her  beauty  and  brilliant  repartee  threw  around  many  bewil- 
dering spells  that  even  the  veterans  of  the  Point  could 
scarcely  resist. 

But,  when  alone  in  her  own  room,  she  looked  at  her 
white  face  in  the  mirror,  and  murmured  in  tones  full  of 
indescribable  dread  and  remorse  : 

**  He  is  dead — he  must  be  dead  by  this'  time !  " 


CHAPTER  XXX\ri. 

REMORSE. 

Christine  had  a  peculiar  experience  while  at  West 
Point.  She  saw  on  every  side  what  would  have  been  to 
her  the  choicest  enjoyments,  were  her  mind  at  rest.  To 
her  artist  nature,  and  with  her  passion  and  power  for 
sketching,  the  Highlands, on  the  Hudson  were  Paradise. 
But  though  she  saw  in  profusion  what  once  would  have 
delighted  her,  and  which  she  now  felt  ought  to  be  the 
source  of  almost  unmingled  happiness,  she  was  still  thor- 
oughly wretched.  It  was  the  old  fable  of  Tantalus 
repeating  itself.  Her  sin  and  its  results  had  destroyed 
her  receptive  power.  The  world  offered  her  pleasiu^es  on 
every  side  ;  she  longed  to  enjoy  them,  but  could  not,  for 
her  heart  was  preoccupied — filled  and  overflowing  with 
fear,  remorse,  and  a  sorrow  she  could  not  define. 

A  vain,  shallow  girl  might  soon  have  forgotten  such  an 
experience  as  Christine  had  passed  through.  Such  a 
creature  would  have  been  sentimental  or  hysterical  for  a 
little  time,  according  to  temperament,  and  then  have  gone 
to  flirting  with  some  new  victim  with  the  same  old  zest. 
There  are  belles  so  weak  and  wicked  that  they  would 
lather  plume  themselves  on  the  fact  that  one  had  died  out 
of  love  for  them.  But  in  justice  to  all  such  it  should  be 
stated  that  they  rarely  have  mind  enough  to  realize  the 
evil  they  do.  Their  vanity  overshadows  every  other 
faculty,  and  almost  destroys  those  sweet,  pitiful,  unselfish 


228  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

qualities  which  make  a  true  woman  what  a  true  man  most 
reverences  next  to  God. 

Christine  was  proud  and  ambitious  to  the  last  degree, 
Imt  she  had  not  this  small  vanity.  She  did  not  realize 
the  situation  fully,  and  was  unsparing  in  her  self-condem- 
nation. 

If  Dennis  had  been  an  ordinary  man,  and  interested 
her  no  more  than  had  other  admirers,  and  had  she  giver, 
him  no  more  encouragement,  she  would  have  shrugged 
her  shoulders  over  the  result  and  said  she  was  very  sorry 
he  had  made  such  a  fool  of  himself 

But  as  she  went  over  the  past  (and  this  now  she  often 
did),  she  saw  that  he  was  unusually  gifted  ;  nay,  more,  the 
picture  she  discovered  in  the  loft  of  the  store  proved  him 
possessed  of  genius  of  the  highest  order.  And  such  a  man 
she  had  deceived,  tortured,  and  even  killed  !  This  was  the 
verdict  of  her  own  conscience,  the  assertion  of  his  own 
lips.  She  remembered  the  wearing  life  of  alternate  hope 
and  fear  she  had  caused  him.  She  remembered  how  eagerly 
he  hung  on  her  smiles  and  sugared  nothings,  and  how  her 
equally  causeless  frowns  would  darken  all  the  world  to  him. 
She  saw  day  after  day  how  she  had  developed  in  a  strong, 
true  heart,  with  its  native  power  to  love  unimpaired,  the 
most  intense  passion,  and  all  that  her  own  lesser  light 
might  burn  a  little  more  brightly.  Then,  with  her  burning 
face  buried  in  her  hands,  she  would  recall  the  bitter, 
shameful  consummation.  Worse  than  all.  waking  oi  sleep- 
ing, she  continually  saw  a  pale,  thin  face,  that  even  in 
death  looked  upon  her  with  unutterable  reproach.  In 
addition  to  the  misery  caused  by  her  remorse,  there  was  a 
'.leeper  bitterness  still.  Within  the  depths  of  her  soul  a 
voice  told  her  that  the  picture  was  true  ;  that  he  might  have 
awakened  her,  and  led  her  out  into  the  warmth  and  light 
of  a  happy  life — a  life  which  she  felt  ought  to  be  possible, 


REMORSE 


329 


but  which  as  yet  had  been  but  a  vague  and  tantalizing 
dream.  Now  the  world  seemed  to  her  utter  chaos — a 
place  of  innumerable  paths  leading  nowhere — and  her  own 
hands  had  broken  the  clue  that  might  have  brought  her 
to  something  assured  and  satisfactory.  She  was  very 
wretched,  for  her  life  seemed  but  a  little  point  between 
disappointment  on  one  side,  and  the  blackness  of  death 
and  nothingness  on  the  other. 

The  very  beauty  of  the  landscapes  about  her  often 
increased  her  pain.  She  felt  that  a  few  weeks  ago  she 
would  have  enjoyed  them  keenly,  and  found  in  their 
transference  to  canvas  a  source  of  unfailing  pleasure.  With 
a  conscious  blush  she  thought  that  if  he  were  present  to 
encourage,  to  stimulate  her,  by  the  very  vitality  of  his 
earnest,  loving  nature,  it  would  be  paradise  itself.  In  a 
word,  she  saw  the  heaven  she  could  not  enter. 

To  that  degree  that  she  had  mind,  heart,  conscience, 
and  an  intense  desire  for  true  happiness,  she  was  unhappy. 
Dress,  dancing,  the  passing  admiration  of  society,  the 
pleasures  of  a  merely  fashionable  life,  seemed  less  and  less 
satisfactory.  She  had  got  beyond  them,  as  children  do 
their  toys,  because  she  had  a  native  superiority  to  them, 
and  yet  they  seemed  her  best  resource.  She  had  all  hei 
old  longing  to  pursue  her  art  studies,  and  everything  about 
her  stimulated  to  this,  but  her  heart  and  hand  appeared 
paralyzed.  She  was  in  just  that  condition,  mental  and 
moral,  in  which  she  could  do  nothing  well. 

And  so  the  days  passed  in  futile  efforts  to  forget — to 
drown  in  almost  reckless  gayety — the  voices  of  conscience 
and  memory. 

But  she  only  remembered  all  the  more  vividly — she 
only  saw  the  miserable  truth  all  the  more  clearly.  She 
suffered  more  in  her  torturing  consciousness  than  Dennis 
in  his  wild  delirium. 


330  BARRIERS  BURNF-D  AWAY. 

After  they  had  been  at  the  hotel  about  a  week,  Mr. 
Ludolph  received  letters  that  made  his  speedy  return 
necessary. 

On  the  same  day  the  family  of  his  old  New  York  part- 
ner arrived  at  the  house  on  their  return  from  the  Catskills. 
Mrs.  Von  Brakhiem  gladly  received  Christine  under  her 
care  and  protection,  feeling  that  the  addition  of  such  a 
bright  star  would  make  her  little  constellation  one  of  the 
most  brilliant  of  the  fashionable  world. 

The  ladies  of  the  house  were  now  immersed  in  the  ex- 
citement of  an  amateur  concert.  Mrs.  Von  Brakhiem,  bent 
upon  shining  among  the  foremost,  though  with  a  borrowed 
lustre,  assigned  Christine  a  most  prominent  part.  She  half 
shrank  from  it,  for  it  recalled  unpleasant  memories,  but  she 
could  not  decline  without  explanations,  and  so  tried  to 
enter  into  the  affair  with  a  sort  of  recklessness. 

The  large  parlors  were  filled  with  chairs,  and  these 
were  soon  occupied  by  a  very  silent  audience,  and  it  was 
evident  that  elegant  toilets  would  vie  for  attention  with  the 
music.  Christine  came  down  on  her  father's  arm,  dressed 
like  a  princess,  and  though  her  diamonds  were  few,  such 
were  their  size  and  brilliancy  that  they  seemed  on  fire. 
Every  eye  followed  Mrs.  Von  Brakhiem's  party,  and  that 
good  lady  took  half  the  admiration  to  herself 

A  superior  tenor,  with  an  unpronounceable  foreign  name, 
had  come  up  from  New  York  to  grace  the  occasion.  But 
personally  he  lacked  every  grace  himself,  his  fine  voice 
being  the  one  thing  that  redeemed  him  from  utter  insignifi- 
cince  in  mind  and  appearance.  Nevertheless  he  was  vain 
beyond  measure,  and  made  the  most  of  himself  on  all  oc- 
casions. 

The  music  was  fine,  for  the  amateurs,  feeling  that  they 
had  a  critical  audience,  did  their  best.  Christine  chose 
three  brilliant,  difficult,  but  heartless  pieces  as  her  rontri- 


REMORSE.  331 

bution  to  the  entertainment  (she  would  not  trust  herself 
with  anything  else),  and  with  something  approaching  reck- 
less gayety  she  sought  to  hide  the  bitterness  at  her  heart. 
Her  splendid  voice  and  exquisite- touch  doubled  the  admi- 
ration her  beauty  and  diamonds  had  excited,  and  Mrs.  Von 
Briikhiem  basked  in  still  stronger  reflected  light.  She  took 
every  opportunity  to  make  it  known  that  she  was  Miss  Lu- 
dolph's  chaperon. 

After  her  first  effort,  the  "  distinguished "  tenor  from 
New  York  opened  his  eyes  widely  at  her.  At  her  second, 
he  put  up  his  eye-glass  in  something  like  astonishment, 
and  the  close  of  her  last  song  found  him  nervously  rum- 
aging  a  music  portfolio  in  the  corner. 

But  for  Christine  the  law  of  association  had  become 
too  strong,  and  the  prolonged  applause  recalled  the  eve- 
ning at  Miss  Brown's  when  the  same  sounds  had  deaf- 
ened her,  but  when  turning  from  it  all  she  had  seen  Den- 
nis Fleet  standing  in  rapt  attention,  his  lips  parted,  his 
eyes  glowing  with  such  an  honest  admiration  that  even 
then  it  was  worth  more  to  her  than  all  the  clamor.  Then, 
by  the  same  law  of  association,  she  again  saw  that  eager, 
earnest  face,  changed,  pale,  dead — dead !  and  she  the 
cause. 

Regardless  of  the  compliments  showered  upo»n  her  she 
buried  her  face  in  her  hands  and  trembled  from  head  to 
foot. 

But  the  irrepressible  tenor  had  found  what  he  wanted, 
and  now  came  forward  asking  that  Miss  Ludolph  would 
sing  a  duet  with  him. 

She  lifted  a  wan  and  startled  face.  Must  the  torturing 
similarity  and  still  mor^  torturing  contrast  of  the  two 
occasions  be  continued .?  But  she  saw  her  father  regard- 
ing her  sternly,  and  that  she  was  becoming  the  subject  of 
curious  glances  and  whispered  surmises.     Her  pride  was 


332  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

aroused  at  once,  and  goaded  on  by  it  she  said :  "  O  cer- 
tainly ;  she  was  not  feeling  well,  but  it  did  not  signify. 

"  And  den,"  put  in  the  tenor,  "  dis  is  von  grand  occa- 
zeon  to  you,  for  it  is  so  unfrequent  dat  I  find  any  .'on 
vorthy  to  sing  dis  style  of  music  vith  mey 

"  What  is  the  music  ? "  asked  Christine  coldly. 

To  her  horror  she  found  it  the .  same  selection  from 
Mendelssohn  that  she  had  sung  with  Dennis. 

"  No,"  she  said  sharply,  "  I  cannot  sing  that." 

"  Pardon  me,  my  daughter,  you  can  sing  it  admirably 
if  you  choose,"  interposed  her  father. 

She  turned  to  him  imploringly,  but  his  face  was  inflex- 
ible, and  his  eyes  had  an  incensed,  meaning  look.  For  a 
moment  she,  too,  was  angry.  Had  he  no  mercy?  She 
was  about  to  coldly  decline,  but  her  friends  were  very 
urgent  and  clamorous,  "  Please  do — don't  disappoint  us," 
echoing  on  every  side.  The  tenor  was  so  surprised  and 
puzzled  at  her  insensibilit}^  to  the  honor  he  had  conferred, 
that,  to  prevent  a  scene  she  could  not  explain,  she  went  to 
the  piano  as  if  led  to  the  stake. 

But  the  strain  was  too  great  upon  her  in  her  suffering 
state.  The  familiar  notes  recalled  so  vividly  the  one  who 
once  before  had  sung  them  at  her  side,  that  she  turned 
almost  ejfpecting  to  see  him, — but  saw  only  the  vain  little 
animated  music-machine,  who  with  many  contortions  was 
producing  the  harmony.  "  Just  this  mockery  my  life  will 
ever  be,"  she  thought ;  "  all  that  I  am — the  best  I  can  do, 
will  always  be  connected  with  something  insignificant  and 
commonplace.  The  rich,  impassioned  voice  of  the  vian^ 
who  sang  these  words,  and  who  might  have  taught  me  Ic 
sing  the  song  of  a  new  and  happier  life,  I  have  silenced 
forever." 

The  thought  overpowered  her.  Just  then  her  part  re- 
curred, but  her  voice  died  away  in  a  miserable  quaver,  and 


REMORSE. 


333 


again  she  buried  her  face  in  her  hands.  Suddenly  she 
sprang  from  the  piano,  darted  through  the  low-cut  open 
window  near,  and  a  moment  later  ordered  her  startled 
maid  from  the  room,  turned  the  key,  and  was  alone. 

Hei  father  explained  coldly  to  the  astonished  audiem^e 
and  the  half-paralyzed  tenor  (who  still  stood  with  his  mouth 
open,)  that  his  daughter  was  not  at  all  well  that  evening, 
and  ought  not  to  have  appeared  at  all.  This  Mrs.  Von 
Brakhiem  took  up  and  repeated  with  endless  variations. 
But  the  evidences  of  sheer  mental  distress  on  the  part  of 
Christine  had  been  too  clear,  and  countless  were  the  whis- 
pered surmises  of  the  fashionable  gossips  in  explanation. 

Mrs.  Von  Brakhiem  herself,  burning  with  curiosity, 
soon  retired,  that  she  might  receive  from  her  lovely  charge 
some  gushing  confidences,  which  she  expected,  as  a  mat- 
ter of  course,  would  be  poured  into  what  she  chose  to  re- 
gard as  her  sympathizing  heart.  But  she  knocked  in  vain 
at  Christine's  door. 

Later,  Mr.  Ludolph  knocked — there  was  no  answer, 

"  Christine  !  "  he  called. 

After  some  delay  a  broken  voice  answered : 

"  You  cannot  enter — I  am  not  well — I  have  retired." 

He  turned  on  his  heel  and  strode  away,  and  that  night 
drank  more  brandy  and  water  than  was  good  for  him. 

As  for  Christine,  warped  and  chilled  though  her  nature 
had  been,  she  was  still  a  woman,  she  was  still  young,  and 
though  she  knew  it  not,  she  had  heard  the  voice  which  had 
spoken  her  heart  into  life.  Through  a  chain  of  circum- 
stances for  which  she  was  partly  to  blame,  she  had  been 
made  to  suffer  as  she  did  not  believe  she  could.  The  ter- 
rible words  of  Mr.  Bruder's  letter  rang  continually  in  her 
ears. — "  Mr.  Fleet  is  not  dying  a  natural  death ;  he  has 
been  slain." 

For   many  long  weary  days  the  conviction   had  been 


334  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

growing  upon  her  that  she  had  indeed  slain  him  and  mor- 
tally wounded  herselt  Until  to-night  she  had  kept  herself 
outwardly  under  restraint,  but  now  the  long  pent-up  feeling 
gave  way,  and  she  sobbed  as  if  her  heart  would  break- 
sobbed  till  the  power  to  weep  was  gone.  If  now  some 
kind,  judicious  friend  had  shown  her  that  she  was  not  so 
guilty  as  she  deemed  herself;  that,  however  frightful  the 
consequences  of  such  acts,  she  was  really  not  to  blame  for 
what  she  did  not  intend  and  could  not  foresee  ;  more  Than 
all,  if  she  could  only  have  known  that  Dennis  was  recover- 
ing instead  of  being  dead  and  buried,  she  might  at  once 
have  entered  on  a  new  and  happier  life.  But  there  was  no 
such  friend,  no  such  knowledge,  and  her  wounded  spirit 
was  thrown  back  upon  itself. 

.At  last,  robed  as  she  had  been  for  the  evening,  she  fell 
asleep  from  sheer  exhaustion  and  grief — for  grief  induces 
sleep. 

The  gems  that  shone  in  her  dishevelled  hair,  that  rose 
and  fell  as  at  long  intervals  her  bosom  heaved  with  a  con- 
vulsive sob,  like  the  fitful  gusts  of  a  storm  that  is  dying 
away ;  the  costly  fabrics  she  wore  made  sad  mockery  in 
their  contrast  with  the  pale,  tear-stained,  suffering  face. 
The  hardest  heart  might  have  pitied  her — yes,  even  the 
wholly  ambitious  heart  of  her  father,  incensed  as  he  was 
that  a  plebeian  stranger  of  this  land  should  have  caused  such 
distress. 

\Vhen  Christine  awoke,  her  pride  awoke  also.  With 
bitterness  of  spirit  she  recalled  the  events  of  the  past  even- 
ing. But  a  new  phase  of  feeling  now  begun  to  manifest 
itself 

After  ner  passionate  outburst  she  was  much  calmer. 
In  this  respect  the  unimpeded  flow  of  feeling  had  done  her 
good,  and,  as  intimated,  if  kindness  and  sympathy  could 
now  have  added  their  gentle  ministrations,  she  might  have 


REMORSE.  335 

been  the  better  for  it  all  her  life.  But  left  to  herself,  ner 
old  and  worst  traits  resumed  their  sway.  Chief  among 
these  was  pride;  and  under  the  influence  of  this  passion 
and  the  acute  suffering  of  her  unsoothed,  unguided  spirit, 
she  began  to  rebel  in  impotent  anger.  She  grew  hard, 
cynical,  and  reckless.  Her  fathei's  lack  of  sympathy  and 
consideration  alienated  her  heart  even  from  him.  Left 
literally  alone  in  the  world,  her  naturally  reserved  nature 
shul  itself  up  more  closely  than  ever.  Even  her  only 
friend,  Susie  Winthrop,  drifted  away.  One  other,  who 
might  have  been — but  she  could  think  of  him  with  only  a 
shudder  now.  All  the  rest  seemed  either  indifferent,  or  to 
condemn,  or  worse  still,  to  be  using  her  like  Mrs.  Von 
Brakhiem,  and  even  her  own  father,  as  a  stepping-stone  to 
their  personal  ambition.  Christine  could  not  see  how  she 
was  to  blame  for  this  isolation.  She  did  not  understand 
that  cold,  selfish  natures,  like  her  own  and  her  father's, 
could  not  surround  themselves  with  warm,  generous 
friends. 

She  saw  only  the  results.  But  with  flashing  eyes  she 
resolved  that  they  should  pry  into  her  heart's  secrets  not  a 
hair's  breadth  further;  that  she  would  be  used  only  so  far 
as  she  chose.  She  would,  in  short,  "  face  out "  the  events- 
of  the  past  evening  simply  and  solely  on  the  ground  that 
she  was  not  well,  and  permit  no  questions  to  be  asked. 

Cold  and  self-possessed  she  came  down  to  a  late  break- 
fast. Mrs.  Von  Brakhiem,  and  others  who  had  been  intro- 
duced, joined  her,  but  nothing  could  penetrate  through  the 
nice  polished  armor  of  her  courteous  reserve.  Her  father 
.ooked  at  her  keenly  but  she  coolly  returned  his  gaze. 

When  alone  with  her  soon  afterward,  he  turned  and 
said  sharply : 

•'  What  does  all  this  mean  ?  " 

She  looked  around  as  if  some  one  else  were  near. 


336  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  Were  you  addressing  me  ?  "  she  asked  coldly. 

**  Yes,  of  course  I  am,"  said  her  father  impatiently. 

"  From  your  tone  and  manner,  I  supposed  you  must 
b«;  speaking  to  some  one  else." 

"  Nonsense !  I  was  speaking  to  you.  What  does  all 
this  mean  ? " 

She  turned  on  him  an  indescribable  look,  and  after  a 
moment  said  in  a  slow,  meaning -tone  : 

"  Have  you  not  heard  my  explanation,  sir  ? " 

Such  was  her  manner,  he  felt  he  could  as  easily  strike 
her  as  say  another  word. 

Muttering  an  oath,  he  turned  on  his  heel  and  left  her 
to  herself 

The  next  morning  her  father  bade  her  "  Good-bye." 
In  parting,  he  said  meaningly : 

"  Christine,  beware  !  " 

Again  she  turned  upon  him  that  peculiar  look,  and 
replied  in  a  low,  firm  tone : 

"That  expression  applies  to  you,  also.  Let  us  both 
beware,  lest  we  repent  at  leisure." 

The  wily  man,  skilled  in  character,  was  now  thoroughly 
convinced  that  in  his  daughter  he  was  dealing  with  a  nature 
very  different  from  his  wife's — that  he  was  now  confronted 
by  a  spirit  as  proud  and  imperious  as  his  own.  He  clearly 
saw  that  force,  threatening,  sternness  would  not  answer  in 
this  case,  and  that  if  he  carried  his  points  it  must  be  through 
skill  and  cunning.  By  some  means  he  must  ever  gain  her 
consent  and  cooperation. 

His  manner  changed.  Instinctively  she  divined  the 
cause  ;  and  hers  did  not.  Therefore  father  and  daughter 
parted  as  father  and  daughter  ought  never  to  part. 

After  his  departure  she  was  to  remain  at  West  Point 
till  ihe  season  closed,  and  then  accompany  Mrs.  Von  Eriik- 
hiem  to  New  York,  where  she  was  to  make  as  long  a  visit 


REMORSE. 


33'/ 


as  she  chose — and  she  chose  to  make  quite  a  long  one. 
In  the  scenery,  and  the  society  of  the  officers  at  West  Point, 
and  the  excitements  of  the  metropolis,  she  found  more  to 
occ  ipy  her  thoughts  than  she  could  have  done  at  Chicago. 
She  went  deliberately  to  work  to  kill  time  and  snatch  from 
it  such  fleeting  pleasures  as  she  might. 

They  stayed  in  the  country  till  the  pomp  and  glory  of 
October  began  to  illumine  the  mountains,  and  then  (to 
Christine's  regret)  went  to  the  city.  There  she  entered  into 
every  amusement  and  dissipation  that  her  tastes  permitted, 
and  found  much  pleasure  in  frequent  visits  to  the  Central 
Park,  although  it  seemed  tame  and  artificial  after  the  wild 
grandeur  of  the  mountains.  It  was  well  that  her  nature 
was  so  high  toned  that  she  found  enjoyment  only  in  what 
was  refined  or  intellectual.  Had  it  been  otherwise  she 
might  soon  have  taken,  in  her  morbid,  reckless  state,  a  path 
jto  swift  and  remediless  ruin,  as  many  a  poor  creature  all 
at  war  with  happiness  and  truth,  has  done.  And  thus  in 
a  giddy  whirl  of  excitement  (Mrs.  Von  Brakhiem's  normal 
condition)  the  days  and  weeks  passed,  till  at  last,  thoroughly 
satiated  and  jaded,  she  concluded  to  return  home,  for  the 
sake  of  change  and  quiet,  if  nothing  else.  Mrs.  Von  Brak- 
hiem  parted  with  her  in  much  regret.  Where  would  she 
find  such  another  ally  in  her  determined  struggle  to  be 
talked  about  and  envjed  a  little  more  than  some  other 
pushing,  jostling  votaries  of  fashion  ? 

In  languor  or  sleep  she  made  the  journey,  and  in  the 
dusk  of  a  winter's  day  her  father  drove  her  to  their  beauti- 
ful home,  but  which  from  association  was  now  almost  hate- 
fal  to  her.  Still  she  was  too  weary  to  think  or  suffer  much. 
They  met  each  other  very  politely,  and  their  intercourse 
assumed  at  once  its  wonted  character  of  high-bied  courtesy, 
though  perhaps  a  little  more  void  of  manifested  sympathy 
and  affection  than  before. 


338  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

Several  days  passed  in  languid  apathy,  the  natural  re- 
action of  past  excitement ;  then  an  event  occurred  which 
most  thoroughly  aroused  her. 


CHAPTER  XXXVIII. 

AN    APPARITION. 


Mr.  Ludolph  had  hoped  to  hear  on  his  return  that 
Dennis  was  dead.  That  would  end  all  diflSculties.  Mr. 
Schwartz  did  not  know — he  was  not  at  last  accounts. 
Ernst  was  summoned.  With  a  bright  hopeful  face  he  stated 
that  his  mother  had  just  received  a  letter  saying  Dennis 
was  a  little  better.  He  was  much  surprised  at  his  employ- 
er's heavy  frown. 

"  He  will  live,"  mused  Mr.  Ludolph ;  "  and  now  shall  I 
permit  him  to  return  to  my  employ,  or  discharge  him  ?  " 

His  brow  contracted  in  lines  of  thought  that  suggested 
shrewdness,  cunning,  nothing  manly,  and  warily  he  judged. 

"  If  I  do  not  take  him,  he  will  go  to  Mr.  Frame  with 
certainty.  He  had  better  return,  for  then  both  will  be 
more  thoroughly  under  my  surveillance. 

"  Curses  on  Christine's  waywardness  !  there  may  be  no 
contesting  her,  and  my  best  chance  will  be  in  managing 
him.  This  I  could  not  do  if  he  were  in  the  store  of  my 
rival."  And  so  for  unconscious  Dennis  this  important 
question  was  decided. 

At  last,  as  we  have  said,  his  delirium  ceased,  and  the 
quiet  light  of  reason  came  into  his  eyes.  He  looked  at  his 
mother  and  smiled,  but  was  too  weak  even  to  reach  out  his 
hand. 

The  Doctor  coming  in  soon  after,  declared  danger  past, 


AN  APPARITION.  -  339 

Mid  that  all  depended  now  on  good  nursing.  Little  fear  of 
his  wanting  that ! 

"  Ah,  mine  Gott  be  praised  1  mine  Gott  be  praised  1 " 
exclaimed  Mr.  Bruder,  who  had  to  leave  the  room  to  pre- 
vent an  explosion  of  his  grateful  happy  feelings  that  might 
have  proved  too  rude  a  tempest  to  Dennis  in  his  weak 
state.  He  was  next  seen  striding  across  the  fields  to  a 
neighboring  grove,  ejaculating  as  he  went.  When  he 
returned  his  eyes  shone  with  a  great  peace  and  joy,  and  he 
had  evidently  been  with  Him  who  had  cast  out  the  demon 
from  his  heart. 

Day  after  day  Dennis  rallied  back  into  life.  Unlike 
poor  Christine,  he  had  beneath  him  the  two  strongest  le- 
vers, love  and  prayer,  and  steadily  they  lifted  him  up  to 
health  and  strength  and  comparative  peace.  At  last  he 
was  able  to  sit  up  and  walk  about  feebly,  and  Mr.  Bruder 
returned  rejoicing  to  his  family.  As  he  wrung  Dennis' 
hand  at  parting,  he  said  in  rather  a  hoarse  voice  : 

"  If  any  von  tell  me  Gott  is  not  goot  and  heareth  not 
prayer,  den  I  tell  him  he  von  grand  heathen.  Oh  !  but  ve 
vill  velcome  you  soon.  Ve  vill  haf  de  grandest  supper,  de 
grandest  songs,  de  grandest — "  but  just  here  Mr.  Bruder 
thought  it  prudent  to  pull  his  big  fur  cap  over  his  eyes,  and 
make  a  rush  for  the  stage. 

As  if  by  tacit  understanding,  Christine's  name  had  not 
been  mentioned  during  Dennis'  recovery.  But  one  evening, 
after  the  little  girls  had  been  put  to  bed,  and  the  lamp 
shaded,  he  sat  in  the  twilight  room,  looking  fixedly  for  a 
long  time  at  the  glowing  embers.  His  mother  was  mo\ang 
quietly  about,  putting  away  the  tea-things,  cleaning  up  after 
the  children's  play:  but  as  she  worked  she  furtively 
watched  him.  At  last,  coming  to  his  side,  she  pushed  back 
the  hair  that  seemed  so  dark  in  contrast  with  the  thin  white 
face,  and  said  gently  : 


34©  '  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  You  are  thinking  of  Miss  Ludolph,  Dennis."  He  had 
some  blood  yet,  for  that  is  not  the  glow  of  the  fire  that  suf- 
fuses his  cheek ;  but  he  only  answered  quietly : 

"  Yes,  mother." 

"Do  you  think  you  can  forget  her?" 

"  I  don't  know." 

"  Prayer  is  a  mighty  thing,  my  son." 

"  But  perhaps  it  is  not  God's  will,"  said  Dennis  de- 
spondently. 

"  Then  surely  it  is  not  yours,  my  child." 

"  No,  mother,"  said  Dennis  with  bowed  head  and  Io« 
tone,  "  but  yet  I  am  human  and  weak." 

"  You  wouM  still  wish  that  it  were  His  will  ? " 

"  Yes ;  I  could  not  help  it." 

"  But  you  would  submit  ? " 

"  Yes,  with  His  help  I  would,"  firmly. 

"  That  is  sufficient,  my  boy ;  I  have  such  confidence  m 
God  that  I  know  this  matter  will  result  in  a  way  to  secure 
you  the  greatest  happiness  in  the  end." 

But  after  a  little  time  he  sighed  wearily : 

"Yet  how  hard  it  is  to  wait  till  the  great  plan  is 
worked  out." 

Solemnly  she  quoted : 

"  God  will  render  to  every  man  according  to  his  deeds. 
To  them  who  by  patient  continuance  in  well-doing,  seek 
for  glory  and  honor  and  immortality,  eternal  life." 

Braced  by  the  stirring  words  of  inspiration,  strength- 
ened by  his  mother's  faith,  he  looked  up  after  a  moment 
and  said  earnestly: 

"  At  any  rate  I  will  try  to  be  a  man  in  your  sense  of 
Ihe  word,  and  that  is  saying  a  great  deal." 

Slie  beamed  at  him  through  her  spectacles  over  her 
knitting-needles  ;  and  he  thought  as  he  gazed  fondly  at  her, 
that  in  spite  of  her  quaint,  old-fashioned  garb,  and  homely 


AN  APPARITION.  3^1 

occupation,  she  appeared  more  truly   a   saint  than   any 
painted  on  cathedral  windows. 

He  soon  noticed  that  his  mother  had  grown  quite 
feeble,  and  determined  on  his  return  to  take  her  with  him, 
believing  that,  by  his  care,  and  wise  use  of  tonics,  he  could 
restore  her  to  her  wonted  strength.  His  increased  salary 
now  justified  the  step. 

Early  in  November  his  physician  said  he  might  return 
to  business  if  he  would  be  prudent.  He  gladly  availed 
himself  of  the  permission,  for  he  longed  to  be  employed 
again. 

■  The  clerks  all  welcomed  him  warmly,  for  his  good 
nature  had  disarmed  jealousy  at  his  rapid  rise.  But  in 
the  greeting  of  Mr.  Ludolph  he  missed  something  of  the 
cordiality  he  expected. 

"Perhaps  she  has  told  him,"  thought  he,  and  at  once 
his  own  manner  became  tinged  with  a  certain  coldness  and 
dignity.  He  determined  that  both  father  and  daughter 
should  think  of  him  only  with  respect. 

At  the  Bruders  the  Millennium  came  with  Dennis. 
Metaphorically  the  fatted  calf  was  killed ;  their  plain  little 
room  was  trimmed  with  evergreens,  and  when  he  entered 
he  was  greeted  by  such  a  jubilant  triumphant  chorus  of 
welcomes  that  almost  took  away  his  breath. 

What  little  he  had  left  was  suddenly  squeezed  out  ot 
him,  for  Mrs.  Bruder,  dropping  her  frying-pan  and  dish- 
cloth, rushed  upon  him  exclaiming : 

"Ah!  mine  fren!  mine  fren !  De  goot  Gott  be 
praised,"  and  she  gave  him  an  embrace  that  made  his 
bones  ache. 

Mr.   Bruder  stalked  about   the   room    repeating   with 

explosive  energy   like  minute-guns,  "Praise   Gott!  Praise 

Gott"  Ernst,  with  his  great  eyes  dimmed  with  happy  tears, 

clung  to  Dennis  hand,  as  if  he  would  make  sure  by  sense 

IS* 


342  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

of  touch  as  well  as  sight  that  he  had  regained  his  beloved 
teacher  once  more.  The  little  Bruders  were  equally 
jubilant,  though  from  rather  mixed  motives.  Dennis  was 
very  weH,  but  they  could  not  keep  their  round  eyes  long 
off  the  preparations  for  such  a  supper  as  never  before  had 
blessed  their  brief  career, 

"  Truly,"  thought  Dennis,  as  he  looked  around  upon  the 
happy  family,  and  contrasted  its  appearance  with  the 
time  he  had  first  seen  it,  "  my  small  investment  of  kind- 
ness and  effort  in  this  case  has  returned  large  interest.  I 
think  it  pays  to  do  good." 

The  evening  was  one  of  almost  unmingled  happiness, 
even  to  his  sore,  disappointed  heart,  and  passed  into 
memory  as  among  the  sunniest  places  of  his  life. 

He  found  a  pleasant  little  cottage  over  on  the  West 
side,  part  of  which  he  rented  for  his  mother  and  sisters. 

With  Mr.  Ludolph's  permission  he  went  after  them, 
and  installed  them  in  it.  Thus  he  had  what  he  had 
needed  all  along,  a  home — a  resting-place  for  body  and 
soul,  under  the  watchful  eye  of  love. 

About  this  time  Dr.  Arten  met  him — stared  a  moment, 
then  clapped  him  on  the  back  in  his  hearty  way,  saying : 

"  Well,  well,  young  man  !  you  have  cause  to  be  thank- 
ful, and  not  to  the  doctors,  either." 

"  I  think  I  am,"  said  Dennis  smiling. 

Suddenly  the  Doctor  looked  grave,  and  asked  in  a 
stern  voice : 

"  Are  you  a  heathen,  or  a  good  Christian  ? " 

"  I  hope  not  the  former,"  replied  Dennis,  a  little  startled. 

"Then  don't  go  and  commit  suicide  again.  Don't  you 
know  flesh  and  blood  can  only  stand  so  much  ?  When  an 
intelligent  young  fellow  like  you  goes  beyond  that,  he  is 
committing  suicide.  Bless  your  soul,  my  ambitious  friend, 
the  ten  commandments  ain't  all  the  law   of  God.      His 


AN  APPARITION.  343 

laws  are  also  written  all  over  this  long  body  of  yours,  and 
you  came  near  paying  a  pretty  penalty  for  breaking  them. 
You  won't  get  off  the  second  time." 

"  You  are  right,  Doctor,  I  now  see  that  I  acted  very 
wrongly." 

"  *  Bring  forth  fruits  meet  for  repentance,'  I  am  rich 
enough  to  give  sound  advice,"  said  the  brusque  old  physi- 
cian, passing  on. 

"  Stop  a  moment,  Doctor,"  cried  Dennis,  "  I  want  you 
to  see  my  mother." 

"  What  is  the  matter  with  her  ?  She  been  breaking 
the  commandments,  too  ? " 

"  Oh  no  !  "  exclaimed  Dennis.  "  She  is  not  a  bit  of  a 
heathen."  . 

"  I'm  not  so  sure  about  that.  I  know  many  eminent 
saints  in  the  church  who  will  eat  lobster  salad  for  supper, 
and  then  send  for  the  doctor  and  minister  before  morning. 
There  is  a  precious  twaddle  about  '  mysterious  Provi- 
dence.' Providence  isn't  half  as  mysterious  as  people 
make  out.  The  doctor  is  expected  to  look  serious  and 
sympathetic,  and  call  their  law-breaking  and  its  penalty 
by  some  outlandish  Latin  name  that  no  one  can  understand. 
I  give  'em  the  square  truth,  and  tell  'em  they've  been 
breaking  the  commandments." 

Dennis  could  not  forbear  smiling  at  the  Doctor's  rough 
handling  of  humbug,  even  in  one  of  its  most  respectable 
guises.     Then  remembering  his  mother,  he  added  gravely : 

"I  am  truly  anxious  about  "my  mother,  she  has  grown 
so  feeble.    I  want,  and  yet  dread,  the  truth." 

The  bantering  manner  of  the  good  old  Doctor  changod 
at  once,  and  he  said  kindly  : 

"  I'll  come,  my  boy ;  I'll  be  in  within  a  few  days,  though 
I  am  nearly  run  off  my  feet." 

He  went  off  muttering,  "  Why  don't  the  people  send  foi 


344  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

some  of  tne  youngsters  that  sit  kicking  up  their  heels  in 
their  offices  all  day  ? " 

Dennis  soon  fell  into  the  routine  of  work  and  grew 
stronger  rapidly.  But  his  face  had  acquired  a  gravity,  a 
something  in  expression  that  only  experience  gives,  which 
made  him  appear  older  by  ten  years.  All  trace  of  the  boy 
had  gone,  and  his  face  was  now  that  of  the  man,  and  of 
one  who  had  suffered. 

As  soon  as  he  recovered  sufficient  strength  to  act  with 
decision,  he  indignantly  tried  to  banish  Christine's  image 
from  his  memory.  But  he  found  this  impossible.  Though 
at  times  his  eyes  would  flash  in  view  of  her  treatment,  they 
would  soon  grow  gentle  and  tender,  and  he  found  him- 
self excusing  and  extenuating  by  the  most  special  plead- 
ings that  which  he  had  justly  condemned. 

One  evening  his  mother  startled  him  out  of  a  long  rev- 
ery  in  which  he  had  almost  vindicated  Christine,  by  say- 
ing: 

"  A  very  pleasant  smile  has  been  gradually  dawning  on 
your  face,  my  son." 

"  Mother,"  replied  he,  hesitatingly,  "  perhaps  I  have 
judged  Miss  Ludolph  harshly." 

"  Your  love,  not  your  reason,  has  evidently  been  plead- 
ing for  her." 

"  Well,  mother,  I  suppose  you  are  right." 

"  So  I  suppose  the  Divine  love  pleads  for  the  weak 
and  sinful,"  said  Mrs.  Fleet  dreamily. 

"  That  is  a  very  pleasant  thought,  mother,  for  some^ 
times  it  seems  that  my  love  could  make  black  white." 

"  That  the  Divine  love  has  done,  but  at  infinite  cost  to 
itself." 

■'  Oh !  that  my  love  at  any  cost  to  itself  could  lead  her 
inlo  the  new  life  of  the  believer,"  said  Dennis  in  a  low 
earnest  tone. 


AN  APPARITION.  345 

"  Your  love  is  like  the  Divine  in  being  unselfish,  but 
remember  the  vital  difterences,  and  take  heed.  God  can 
change  the  nature  of  the  imperfect  creature  that  He  loves, 
you  cannot.  His  love  is  infinite  in  its  strength  and  pa- 
tience. You  are  human.  The  proud,  selfish,  unbelieving 
Miss  Ludolph  (pardon  mother's  plain  words)  could  not 
make  you  happy.  To  the  degree  that  you  were  loyal  to 
God,  you  would  be  unhappy,  and  I  should  surely  dread 
such  a  union.  The  whole  tone  of  your  moral  character 
would  have  to  be  greatly  lowered  to  permit  even  peace." 

"  But  mother,"  said  Dennis  almost  impatiently,  "  in  view 
of  my  unconquerabK  love,  it  is  nearly  the  same  as  if  I  was 
married  to  her  now." 

"  No,  m.y  son,  I  think  not.  I  know  your  pretty  theory 
on  this  subject,  but  it  seems  more  pretty  than  true.  Mar- 
riage makes  a  vital  difference.  It  is  the  closest  union  that 
we  can  voluntarily  form  on  earth,  and  is  the  emblem  of  the 
spiritual  oneness  of  the  believer's  soul  with  Christ.  We  may 
be  led  through  circumstances,  as  you  have  been,  to  love 
one  with  whom  we  should  not  form  such  a  union.  Indeed, 
in  the  true  and  mystic  meaning  of  the  rite,  you  could  not 
marry  Christine  Ludolph.  The  Bible  declares  that  man 
and  wife  shall  be  one.  Unless  she  changes,  unless  you 
change  (and  that  God  forbid),  this  could  not  be.  You 
would  be  divided,  separated  in  the  deepest  essentials  of  your 
life  here,  and  in  every  respect  hereafter.  Again,  while  God 
loves  every  sinful  man  and  woman.  He  does  not  take  them 
to  His  heart  till  they  cry  out  to  Him  for  strength  to 
abandon  the  destroying  evil  He  hates.  There  are  no  un 
changed,  unrenewed  hearts  in  heaven." 

"  Oh,  mother,  how  inexorable  is  your  logic,"  said  Den- 
nis, breathing  heavily. 

"  Truth  in  the  end  is  ever  more  merciful  than  false- 
hood,'' she  answered  gently. 


346  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

After  a  little,  he  said  with  a  heavy  sigh,  "  Mother,  you 
are  right,  and  I  am  very  weak  and  foolish." 

She  looked  at  him  with  unutterable  tenderness;  she 
could  not  crush  out  all  hope,  and  so  whispered,  as  before, 
"  Prayer  is  mighty,  my  child.  It  is  not  wrong  for  you  to 
love.  It  is  your  duty,  as  well  as  privilege,  to  pray  for  her. 
Trust  your  Heavenly  Father,  do  His  will,  and  He  will  solve 
this  question  in  the  very  best  way." 

Dennis  turned  to  his  mother  in  sudden  and  passionate 
earnestness,  and  said  : 

"Your  prayers  are  mighty,  mother,  I  truly  believe.  Oh, 
pray  for  her — for  my  sake  as  well  as  fiers.  Looking  from 
the  human  side,  I  am  hopeless.  It  is  only  God's  almighty 
power  that  can  make  us,  as  you  say,  truly  one.  I  fear 
that  now  she  is  only  a  heartless  fashionable  girl.  Yet,  if 
she  is  only  this,  I  do  not  see  how  I  came  to  love  her  as  I 
do.     But  my  trust  now  is  in  your  prayers  to  God." 

"  And  in  your  own  also;  the  great  Father  loves  you  too, 
my  son.  If  He  chooses  that  the  dross  in  her  character 
should  be  burned  away,  and  your  two  lives  fused,  there  are 
in  His  providence  just  the  fiery  trials,  just  the  circumstances 
that  will  bring  it  about."  (Was  she  unconsciously  uttering 
I  prophecy  ? )  "  The  crucible  of  affliction,  the  test  of  some 
great  emergency,  will  often  develop  a  seemingly  weak  and 
frivolous  girl  into  noble  life,  where  there  is  real  gold  of 
latent  worth  to  be  acted  on." 

"  Christine  Ludolph  is  anything  but  weak  and  frivo- 
lous," said  he.  "  Her  character  is  strong,  and  I  think  most 
decided  in  its  present  bent.  But,  as  you  say,  if  the  Divine 
Alchemist  wills  it,  He  can  change  even  the  dross  to  gi.  d, 
aid  burn  unbelief  to  faith." 

Hope  !  Christine.  There  is  light  coming,  though  as  yet 
you  cannot  see  it.  There  are  angels  of  mercy  flying  toward 
you,   though  as  yet  you  cannot   hear  the  rustle  of  their 


AN  APPARITION.  3^7 

wings.  The  dark  curtain  of  death  and  despair  can  never 
shut  down  upon  a  life  linked  to  heaven  by  such  true  strong 
prayers. 

And  yet  the  logica.  results  of  wrong- doing  will  work 
themselves  out^  sin  must  be  punished,  and  faith  sorely 
tried. 

Dennis  heard  incidentally  that  Christine  was  absent  on 
a  visit  to  New  York,  but  knew  nothing  of  the  time  for  her 
return. 

He  now  bent  himself  steadily  and  resolutely  to  the 
mastering  of  his  business,  and  under  Mr.  Bruder's  direc- 
tion resumed  his  art  studies,  though  now  in  such  moder- 
ation as  Dr.  Arten  would  commend. 

He  also  entered  on  an  artistic  effort  that  would  tax  his 
powers  and  genius  to  the  very  utmost,  of  which  more  anon. 

By  the  time  Christine  returned,  he  was  quite  himself 
again,  though  much  paler  and  thinner  than  when  first 
entering  the  store. 


After  Christine  had  been  home  nearly  a  week,  her 
father,  to  rouse  her  out  of  her  listlessness,  said  one 
morning : 

"  We  have  recently  received  quite  a  remarkable  paint- 
ing from  Europe — you  will  find  it  in  the  upper  show-room, 
and  had  better  come  down  to-day  to  see  it,  for  it  may  be 
sold  soon.  I  think  you  would  like  to  copy  one  or  twq 
figures  in  it. 

The  lassitude  from  her  New  York  dissipation  was 
passing  away,  and  her  active  nature  beginning  to  assert 
itself  again.     She  started  up  and  said: 

"  Wait  five  minutes  and  I  will  get  sketching  materials 
and  go  down  with  you." 

By  reason  of  her  interdict,  made  so  earnestly,  and  indeed 
fiercely,  and  confirmed  by  her  manner,  at  West  Point,  her 


348  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

father  had  never  mentioned  the  name  of  Dennis  Fleet 
The  very  fact  that  no  one  had  spoken  of  him  since  that 
dfeadful  day  when  tidings  came  in  on  every  side  that  he 
could  not  live,  was  confirmation  in  her  mind  that  he  was 
dead. 

She  dreaded  going  to  the  store,  especially  for  the  first 
time,  for  everything  would  irresistibly  remind  her  of  him 
of  whom  she  could  never  think  now  without  a  pang.  But 
as  the  ordeal  must  come,  why  the  sooner  it  was  over  the 
better.  So  a  few  moments  later  her  hand  was  on  her 
father's  arm,  and  they  on  their  way  to  the  Art  Building 
as  in  former  and  happier  days. 

Mr.  Ludolph  went  to  his  office,  and  Christine,  looking 
neither  to  the  right  or  left,  ascended  to  the  upper  show- 
room, and  at  once  sought  to  engage  every  faculty  in  mak- 
ing the  sketch  her  father  had  suggested. 

Since  Dennis  was  not,  as  she  believed,  either  on  the 
earth  or  elsewhere,  she  tried  to  take  up  life  again  as  it  was 
before  he  came,  and  act  as  if  he  never  had  been. 

Hopeless  task !  In  that  familiar  place,  where  they  had 
commenced  re-arranging  the  store,  everything  spoke  of 
him.  She  saw  his  glowing  cheeks  again,  his  dark,  eager 
eyps  followed  her  every  movement,  and  interpreted  her 
wishes  even  before  she  could  speak.  Some  of  the  pictures 
on  the  walls  his  hands  had  handled,  and  in  her  strong 
fancy  his  lithe  form  seemed  moving  the  ladder  to  lift  then- 
down  again,  w^hile  she,  with  heart  and  mind  at  rest,  look 
ed  on  with  growing  curiosity  and  interest  on  her  humble 
helper. 

AVhat  changes  !iad  occurred  within  a  short  half  year ! 
Siie  shuddered  at  the  thought  that  one  who  was  then  so 
hislinct  with  life  and  happiness  could  now  be  dust  and 
nodiingness,  and  she  tlie  cause. 

.Association  ;iiid   con:K:icnce   were  again    too   powi'uful. 


AN  APPARITION.  349 

She  was  becoming  nervous  and  full  of  a  strange  unrest,  so 
she  concluded  to  finish  her  sketch  at  another  time.  As 
she  was  gathering  up  her  materials,  she  heard  some  one 
enter  the  room. 

She  was  in  that  morbid  unstrung  state  that  the  least 
thing  startled  her. 

But  imagine  if  you  can  her  wonder  and  terror  as  she  saw 
Dennis  Fleet — the  dead  and  buried,  as  she  fully  believed 
— enter  carrying  a  picture  as  of  old,  and  looking  as  of  old, 
save  that  he  was  paler  and  thinner.  Was  it  an  apparition  f 
or,  as  she  had  read,  had  she  dwelt  so  long  on  this  trouble 
that  her  mind  3,nd  imagination  were  becoming  disordered 
and  able  to  place  their  wild  creations  before  her  as  re- 
alities ? 

Her  sketching  materials  fell  clattering  to  the  floor, 
and  after  one  sharp  exclamation  of  alarm  she  stood  as  if 
transfixed,  with  lips  parted,  eyes  dilated,  and  panting  like 
a  frightened  bird. 

If  a  sculptor  had  wished  to  portray  the  form  and  at- 
titude of  one  startled  by  the  supernatural,  never  could  he 
have  found  a  more  perfect  model  than  Christine  at  this 
moment. 

As  she  had  been  seated  a  little  to  one  side  Dennis  had 
not  seen  her  at  first ;  but  on  recognizing  her  so  unexpect- 
edly he  was  scarcely  less  startled  than  she,  and  the  valuable 
picture  he  was  carrying  nearly  met  sudden  and  untimely 
destruction.  But  he  had  no  such  reason  as  Christine  for 
the  continuance  of  his  surprise,  and  at  once  recovering 
himself,  he  set  the  picture  against  the  wall. 

This  made  the  illusion  still  more  strange  and  tenible 
to  Christine.  There  was  the  dead  before  her  doing  just  as 
she  h^d  been  imagining.  Just  what  he  had  done  at  her 
bidding  months  before. 

Dennis  was  greatly  puzzled  by  her  look  of  a^arm  and 


3SO 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


distress.  Then  he  thought  that  perhaps  she  feared  he 
would  break  out  in  bitter  and  angry  invectives  again,  and 
he  advanced  toward  her  to  assure  her  of  the  contrary. 

Slowly  and  instinctively  she  retreated  and  put  up  her 
hands  with  an  indescribable  and  deprecatory  gesture. 

She  cannot  endure  the  sight  of  me,  thought  he,  but  at 
once  said  with  dignified  courtesy : 

"  Miss  Ludolph,  you  have  nothing  to  fear  from  me  that 
you  should  regard  me  in  that  manner.  You  need  not 
shrink  as  if  I  had  a  contagion.  We  can  treat  each  other 
as  courteous  strangers,  at  least." 

"  I — I — I — thought  you  were  dead !  "  gasped  she  in  a 
loud  whisper. 

Dennis'  cheek  grew  paler  than  it  had  been  in  all  his 
sickness,  and  then  as  suddenly  became  dark  with  anger. 
With  eyes  terrible  in  their  indignation  he  advanced  a  few 
paces  almost  fiercely.  She  trembled  violently  and  shrank 
farther  away. 

"  You  thought  I  was  dead  ? "  he  asked  sternly. 

"Ye-e-s,''  in  the  same  unnatural  whisper. 

"What  r' he  exclaimed,  in  short  and  bitter  emphasis, 
'•'  do  you  mean  to  say  that  you  never  cared  ';ven  to  ask 
whether  I  lived  or  died  in  my  long,  weary  illness  that  you 
were  so  supremely  indifferent  to  my  fate  that  you  could 
not  articulate  one  sentence  of  inquiry  ?  Surely  this  is  the 
very  sublimity  of  heartlessness;  this  is  to  be  callous  beyond 
one's  power  of  imagmation.  It  seems  to  me  that  I  would 
feel  that  much  interest  in  any  human  being  I  had  once 
known.  If  even  a  dog  had  licked  my  hand  in  good  will, 
and  afterwards  I  had  seen  it,  wounded  or  sick,  creep  off 
into  a  covert,  the  next  time  I  passed  that  way  I  would 
step  aside  to  see  whether  the  poor  creature  had  lived  or 
died.  But  after  all  the  wealth  of  affection  that  I  lavished 
upon  you,  after  toiling  and  almost  dying  in  my  vain  effort 


IF  HE  KNEW! 


35 « 


to  touch  your  marble  heart,  you  have  not  even  the  humanity 
to  ask  if  I  am  above  ground  !  " 

The  illusion  had  now  passed  from  Christine's  mind,  and 
with  it  her  alarm.  The  true  state  of  the  case  was  rapidly 
dawning  upon  her,  and  she  was  about  to  speak  eagerly,  but 
in  his  strong  indignation  he  continued  impetuously : 

"  You  thought  I  was  dead  !  The  wish  probably  was 
lather  of  the  thought.  My  presumption  deserved  no  better 
fate.  But  permit  me  to  tell  you,  though  all  unbidden,  I 
did  not  die.  With  God's  blessing  I  expect  to  live  to  a 
good  old  age,  and  intend  that  but  few  years  shall  pass  before 
my  name  is  as  well  known  and  honored  as  the  ancient  one 
of  Ludolph,"  and  he  turned  on  his  heel  and  strode  from 
the  room. 


CHAPTER  XXXIX. 

IF  HE  KNEW  ! 


Christine  sat  for  a  little  time  after  the  angry  tread  of 
Dennis  died  away  almost  paralyzed  by  surprise  and  deeper 
emotions.  Her  mind,  though  usually  clear  and  rapid  in  its 
action,  was  too  confused  to  realize  the  truth.  Suddenly 
she  sprang  up,  gathered  together  her  sketching  materials, 
and  drawing  a  thick  veil  over  her  face  sped  through  the 
store,  through  the  streets,  to  the  refuge  of  her  own  room. 
She  must  be  alone. 

Hastily  throwing  aside  her  wrappings,  she  commenced 
walking  up  and  down  in  her  excitement.  Her  listlessness 
was  gone  now  in  very  truth,  and  her  eye  and  cheek 
glowed  as  never  before.  As  if  it  had  become  the  great 
vivifying  principle  of  her  own  life,  she  kept  repeating  con- 
tinually in  a  low  ecstatic  tone ;  * 


352  BARRIERS  BURNED    AWAY. 

"  He  lives  !  he  lives  !  he  is  not  dead  ;  his  blood  is  not 
upon  my  conscience !" 

At  last  she  sat  down  in  her  luxurious  chair  before  the 
window  to  think  it  all  over — to  commune  with  herself— 
often  the  habit  of  the  reserved  and  solitary.  From  the 
disjointed  sentences  she  let  fall,  from  the  reflection  of  her 
excited  face  in  yonder  glass,  we  gather  quite  correctly  the 
workings  of  her  mind.     Her  first  words  were  : 

"  Thank  heaven !  thank  something  or  other,  I  have 
not  blotted  out  that  true  strong  genius." 

Again — "  What  untold  wretchedness  I  might  have  saved 
myself  if  I  had  only  asked  the  question  in  a  casual  way, 
How  is  Mr.  Fleet  ?  Christine  Ludolph,  with  all  your 
pride  and  imagined  superiority,  you  can  be  very  foolish. 

"  How  he  hates  and  despises  me  now !  little  woo- 
der! 

"  But  if  he  knew  ! 

"  Knew  what  ?  Why  could  you  not  ask  after  him,  as 
any  other  sick  man  ?  You  have  had  a  score  or  so  of 
offers,  and  did  not  trouble  yourself  as  to  the  fate  of  the  love- 
lorn swains.  Seems  to  me  your  conscience  has  been  very 
tender  in  this  case.  And  the  fact  that  he  misjudges  you, 
thinks  you  callous,  heartless,  and  is  angry,  troubles  you 
beyond  measure. 

"  When  before  were  you  so  sensitive  to  the  opinion  of 
clerks  and  trades-people,  or  even  the  proudest  suitors  for 
your  hand  .■*  But  in  this  case  you  must  cry  out  in  a  tone 
of  sentimental  agony — '  Oh,  if  he  only  knew.' 

"  Knew  what  ?" 

Her  face  in  yonder  mirror  has  a  strange  mtroverted 
expression,  as  if  she  were  scanning  her  own  soul.  Het 
orovv  contracted  with  tliought  and  perplexity. 

Gradually  a  warm  beautiful  light  steals  into  her  face 
like  llie  scowl  of*a  winter  morninir   turnin'i  into  a  dawn  of 


IF  HE  KNEW  !  353 

June;  her  eyes  become  gentle  and  tender.  A  richer 
color  comes  out  upon  her  cheeks,  spreads  up  her  temples, 
mantles  her  brow,  and  pours  a  crimson  torrent  down  her 
snowy  neck.  Suddenly  she  drops  her  burning  face  into  her 
hands,  and  hides  a  vision  one  would  gladly  look  longer 
upon.  But  see,  even  her  little  ears  have  become  as  red 
coral. 

The  bleakest  landscape  in  the  world  brightens  into 
something  like  beauty  when  the  sun  shines  upon  it.  So 
love,  the  richer,  sweeter  light  of  the  soul,  makes  the  plain- 
est face  almost  beautiful.  But  when  it  changed  Christine 
Ludolph's  faultless,  but  too  cold  and  classical,  features 
into  those  of  a  loving  woman's,  it  suggested  a  beauty 
scarcely  human. 

A  moment  later  there  came  a  faint  whisper : 
.  "  I  fear — I  almost  fear  I  love  him."     Then  she  lifted  a 
startled,  frightened  face  and  looked  timidly  around  as  if, 
in  truth,  walls  had  ears. 

Reassured  by  the  consciousness  of  solitude,  her  head 
dropped  on  her  wrist  and  her  revery  went  forward.  Her 
eyes  became  dreamy,  and  a  half  smile  played  upon  her  lips 
as  she  recalled  proof  after  proof  of  his  affection,  for  she 
knew  the  cruel  words  of  the  last  interview  were  the  result 
of  misunderstanding. 

Bnt  suddenly  she  sprang  from  her  seat  and  commenced 
pacing  the  room  in  the  strongest  perturbation. 

"  Mocked  again  !"  she  cried  ;  "  the  same  cruel  fate  ! 
My  old  miserable  experience  in  a  new  aspect.  Ever}  thing 
within  my  reach,  save  the  one  thing  I  want,  I  possess  the 
means  of  all  kinds  of  happiness  except  that  which  makes 
me  happy.  In  every  possible  way  I  am  pledged  to  a  ca- 
reer and  future  in  which  he  can  take  no  part.  Though  my 
heart  is  full  of  the  strangest,  sweetest  chaos,  and  I  do  not 
truly  understand  jnyself,  yet  I  am  satisfied  that  this  is  not 


354 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


a  school-girl's  fancy.  But  my  father  would  regard  it  as  the 
Gudgeon  farce  repeated.  Already  he  suspects  and  frowns 
upon  the  whole  thing.  I  should  have  to  break  with  him 
utterly  and  forever.  I  should  have  to  give  up  all  my  am- 
bitious plans  and  towering  hopes  of  life  abroad.  .A.  plain 
Mrs.  in  this  city  of  shops  is  a  poor  substitute  for  a  count- 
ess' coronet  and  a  villa  on  the  Rhine." 

Her  cheek  flushed  and  lip  curled. 

"  That  indeed  would  be  the  very  extravagance  of  ro- 
mance, and  how  could  I,  least  of  all,  who  so  long  have 
scoffed  at  such  things,  explain  my  action?  These  mush- 
room shop-keepers,  who  were  all  nobodies  the  other  day, 
elevate  their  eyebrows  when  a  merchant's  daughter  marries 
her  father's  clerk.  But  when  would  the  wonder  cease  if 
a  German  lady  of  rank  followed  suit  ? 

"  Then  again  my  word,  my  honor,  every  sacred  pledge 
I  could  give,  forbids  the  whole  thing. 

"  Would  to  heaven  I  had  never  seen  him,  for  this  un- 
fortunate fancy  of  mine  must  be  crushed  in  its  inception  ; 
strangled  before  it  comes  to  master  me  as  it  has  him." 

After  a  long  and  weary  sigh  she  continued :  "  Well, 
everything  is  favorable  for  a  complete  and  final  break  be- 
tween us.  He  believes  me  heartless  and  wicked  to  the 
last  degree.  I  cannot  undeceive  him  without  showing 
more  than  he  should  know.  I  have  only  to  avoid  him,  to 
say  nothing,  and  we  drift  apart. 

"  If  we  could  only  have  been  friends,  he  might  have 
helped  me  so  much;  but  that  now  Is  clearly  impossible- 
yes,  for  both  of  us. 

"Truly  one  of  these  American  poets  was  right — 
For  of  all  sad  words  of  tongue  or  pen, 
The  saddest  are  these — It  might  have  been. 

"  But,  thanks  to  the  immortal  gods,  as  the  pious  hea- 
then used  to  say,  his  blood  is  not  on  my  hands,  and  this 


IF  HE  knew: 


355 


has  taken  a  mountain  off  my  heart.  Thus  relieved,  T  can 
perhaps  forget  all  the  miserable  business.  The  Fates 
forbid  that  I,  as  it  has  forbidden  that  many  another  high- 
born woman,  should  marry  where  she  might  have  loved.' 

If  Christine's  heart  was  wronged,  her  pride  was  highly 
gratified  by  this  conclusion.  Here  was  a  new  and  strong 
resemblance  between  herself  and  the  great.  In  mind  she 
recalled  the  titled  unfortunates  who  had  "loved  where 
they  could  not  marry,"  and  with  the  air  and  feeling  of  a 
martyr  to  ancestral  grandeur  she  pensively  added  her  name 
to  the  list. 

With  her  conscience  freed  from  its  burden  of  remorse, 
with  the  consciousness,  so  sweet  to  every  woman,  that  she 
might  accept  if  she  would,  in  spite  of  her  airs  of  martyr- 
dom, the  world  had  changed  greatly  for  the  better,  and 
with  the  natural  buoyancy  of  youth  she  reacted  into  quite  a 
cheerful  and  hopeful  state. 

Her  father  noticed  this  on  his  return  to  dinner  in  the 
evening,  and  sought  to  learn  its  cause.     He  asked  : 

"  How  did  you  make  out  with  your  sketch  ? " 

"  I  made  a  beginning,"  she  answered,  with  some  little 
color  rising  to  her  cheek. 

"  Perhaps  you  were  interrupted  ? " 

"  Why  did  you  not  tell  me  that  Mr.  Fleet  had  recov- 
ered ? "  she  asked  abruptly. 

"  Why,  did  you  think  he  was  dead  ? " 

"  Yes." 

ft 

Mr.  Ludolph  indulged  in  a  hearty  laugh  (he  knew  the 
power  of  ridicule). 

"Well,  that  is  excellent !  "  he  said.  "  You  thought  the 
callow  youth  had  died  on  account  of  your  hardness  of  heart; 
and  this  explains  your  rather  peculiar  moods  and  tens(.s  of 
late.  Let  me  assure  you  that  a  Yankee  never  dies  from 
such  a  cause." 


356  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY.         » 

Mr.  I.udolph  determined  if  possible  to  break  down  her 
reserve  and  let  in  the  garish  light,  which  he  knew  to  be 
most  fatal  to  all  romantic  iancies,  that  ever  thrive  jest  in 
the  twilight  of  secrecy. 

But  she  was  on  the  alert  now,  and  in  relief  of  mind  had 
regained  her  poise  and  power  to  mask  her  feeling.  So 
she  said  in  a  tone  tinged  with  cold  indifference  : 

"  You  may  be  right,  but  I  had  good  reason  to  believe 
to  the  contrary,  and  as  I  am  not  altogether  without  a  con- 
science, you  might  have  saved  much  pain  by  merely  men- 
tioning the  fact  of  his  recovery." 

"But  you  had  adjured  me  with  frightful  solemnity 
never  to  mention  his  name  again,"  said  her  father,  still 
laughihg. 

Christine  colored  and  bit  her  lip.  She  had  forgotten 
for  the  moment  this  awkward  fact. 

"  I  was  nervous,  sick,  and  not  myself  that  day,  and  every 
one  I  met  could  speak  of  nothing  but  Mr.  Fleet." 

"  Well  really,"  he  said,  "  in  the  long  list  of  the  victims 
that  you  have  wounded,  if  not  slain,  I  never  supposed  my 
clerk  and  quondam  man-of-all-work  would  prove  so  serious 
a  case." 

"  A  truce  to  your  bantering,  father !  Mr.  Fleet  is  humble 
only  in  station,  not  in  character,  not  in  ability.  You  know 
1  have  never  been  very  tender  with  the  '  victims,'  as  you  des- 
ignate them,  of  the  Mellen  stamp ;  but  Mr.  Fleet  is  a  man, 
in  the  best  sense  of  the  word,  and  one  that  I  have  wronged. 
Now  that  the  folly  is  past  I  may  as  well  explain  to  you  some 
things  that  have  appeared  strange.  I  think  I  can  truly  say 
that  I  have  given  those  gentlemen  who  have  honored,  or 
rather  annoyed  nie,  by  their  unwished  for  regard,  very  little 
encouragement.  Therefore,  1  was  not  responsible  for  any 
follies  they  might  commit.  But  for  artistic  reasons  I  did 
encourage  Mr.  Fleet's  infatuation.     You  remember  how  I 


IF  HE  KNEW! 


357 


failed  in  making  a  copy  of  that  picture.  In  my  determina- 
tion to  succeed,  I  hit  upon  the  rather  novel  expedient  of 
inspiring  and  copying  the  genuine  thing.  You  know  my 
imitative  power  is  better  than  my  imagination,  and  I  thought 
that  by  often  witnessing  the  expression  of  feeling  and  pas- 
sion^ I  might  learn  to  portray  it  without  the  disagreeable 
necessity  of  passing  through  any  such  experiences  myself. 
But  the  experiment,  as  you  know,  did  not  work  well. 
These  living  subjects  are  hard  to  manage,  and,  as  I  have 
said,  I  am  troubled  by  a  conscience." 

Mr.  Ludolph's  eyes  sparkled,  and  a  look  of  genuine  ad- 
miration lighted  up  his  features. 

"  Bravo  !  "  he  cried,  "your  plan  was  worthy  of  you  and 
of  your  ancestry.  It  was  a  real  stroke  of  genius.  You 
were  too  tender-hearted,  otherwise  it  would  have  been  per- 
fect. What  are  the  lives  of  a  dozen  such  young  fellows  to 
be  compared  with  the  development  and  perfection  of  such 
a  woman  as  you  bid  fair  to  be  ? " 

Christine  had  displayed  in  this  transaction  just  the 
qualities  that  her  father  most  admired.  But  even  she  was 
shocked  at  his  callousness,  and  lifted  a  somewhat  startled 
face  to  his. 

"  Your  estimate  of  human  life  is  rather  low,"  she 
said. 

"  Not  at  all.  Is  not  one  perfect  plant  better  than  a 
dozen  imperfect  ones  ?  The  gardener  often  pulls  up  the 
crowding  and  inferior  ones  to  throw  them  about  the  roots 
of  the  strongest,  that  in  their  death  and  decay  they  may 
nourish  it  to  the  most  perfect  development.  What  the 
gardener  does  for  his  plants,  we  certainly  can  do  for  our- 
selves. They  secure  most  in  this  world  who  have  the  skill 
and  power  to  grasp  most." 

"  But  how  about  the  rights  of  others  ?     Human  plants 
would  naturally  object  to  the  uprooting  process." 
t6 


358  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  Let  them  be  on  their  guard  and  prevent  it  then. 
Every  one  is  for  himself  in  this  world.  That  can  be  plainly 
seen  through  the  thin  disguises  that  some  try  to  assume. 
After  all,  half  the  people  we  meet  are  little  better  than  sum- 
mer weeds." 

Christine  almost  shuddered  to  think  that  the  one  bound 
to  her  by  closest  ties  cherished  such  sentiments  toward  the 
world,  and  probably,  to  a  certain  extent,  toward  herself 
but  she  only  said  quietly : 

"  I  can  hardly  subscribe  to  your  philosophy  as  yet, 
though  I  fear  I  act  upon  it  too  often.  Still  it  does  not  ap- 
ply to  Mr,  Fleet.  He  is  gifted  in  no  ordinary  degree,  and. 
doubtless  will  stand  high  here  in  his  own  land  in  time.  And 
now  as  explanation  has  been  made,  with  your  permission 
we  will  drop  this  subject  out  of  our  conversation  as  be- . 
fore." 

"  Well,"  said  Mr.  Ludolph  to  himself,  between  sips  of 
his  favorite  Rhine  wine,  "  I  have  gained  much  light  on  the 
subject  to-night,  and  I  must  confess,  that  even  with  my 
rather  wide  experience,  the  whole  thing  is  a  decided  nov- 
elty. If  Christine  were  only  less  troubled  with  conscience, 
over-fastidiousness,  or  whatever  it  is — if  she  were  more 
moderate  in  her  ambition  as  an  artist,  and  could  be  satis- 
fied with  power  and  admiration,  as  other  women  are,  what 
a  star  she  might  become  in  the  fashionable  world  of  Eu- 
rope !  But,  for  some  reason,  I  never  feel  sure  of  her.  Her 
spirit  is  so  wilful  and  obstinate,  and  she  seems  full  of  vague 
longing  after  an  ideal,  impossible  world,  that  I  live  in  con- 
stant dread  that  she  may  be  led  into  some  folly,  fatal  to  my 
ambition.  This  Fleet  is  a  most  dangerous  fellow.  I  wioh 
I  were  well  rid  of  him  ;  still,  matters  are  not  so  bad  as  I 
fear,  that  is, '  if  she  told  me  the  whole  truth ;  which  1 
am  inclined  to  doubt.  But  I  had  better  keep  him  'ii  my 
employ  dur'ng  the  few  months  we  still  remain  in  this  Knd, 


IF  HE  KNEW! 


359 


as  I  can  watch  over  him,  and  guard  against  his  influence 
better  than  if  he  were  beyond  my  control.  But  no  more 
promotion  or  encouragement  does  he  get  from  me.'' 

Janette,  Christine's  French  maid,  passed  the  open 
door.  The  thought  struck  Mr.  Ludolph  that  he  might  se- 
cure an  ally  in  her. 

The  unscrupulous  creature  was  summoned,  and  agreed 
for  no  very  large  sum  to  become  a  spy  upon  Christine,  and 
report  anyttiing  looking  toward  intercourse  with  Dennis 
Fleet. 

"  The  game  is  still  in  my  hands,"  said  the  wary  man. 
"  I  will  yet  steer  my  richly-freighted  argosy  up  the  Rhine. 
Here's  to  Christine,  the  belle  of  the  German  court ! "  and 
he  filled  a  slender  Venetian  glass  to  the  brim,  as  if  the 
reality  were  before  him,  and  then  retired. 

Christine,  on  reaching  her  room,  muttered  to  herself, 
"  He  now  knows  all  that  I  mean  he  ever  shall.  We  are  one 
in  our  ambition,  if  nothing  else,  and  therefore  our  relations 
must  be,  to  a  certain  degree,  confidential  and  amicable. 
And  no^  forget  you  have  a  conscience,  forget  you  have 
a  heart,  and,  above  all  things,  forget  that  you  have  ever 
seen  or  known  Dennis  Fleet" 

Thus,  the  impetuosity  of  a  false  education,  a  proud,  self- 
ish, ambitious  life,  decided  her  choice. 

She  plunged  as  resolutely  into  the  whirl  of  fashionable 
gayety  about  her  as  she  had  in  the  dissipations  of  New 
York,  determined  to  forget  the  past,  and  kill  the  time  that 
must  intervene  before  she  could  sail  away  to  her  brilliant 
future  in  Germany. 

But  she  gradually  learned  that  if  conscience  robbed 
het  of  peace  before,  something  else  disturbed  her  now,  and 
rendered  her  efforts  futile.  She  ^ound  that  there  was  a 
principle  at  work  in  her  heart  stronger  even  than  her  reso- 
lute will. 


360  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

In  spite  of  her  purpose  to  the  contrary,  she  caught 
herself  continually  thinking  of  him,  and  indulging  in 
stiange  delicious  reveries  in  regard  to  him. 

At  last  she  ceased  to  shun  the  store  as  she  had  done 
at  first,  but  with  increasing  frequency  found  some  necessity 
for  going  there. 

After  the  interview  in  the  show-room,  Dennis  was 
diifen  to  the  bitter  conclusion  that  Christine  was  utterly 
Heartless,  and  cared  not  a  jot  for  him.  His  impression 
was  confirmed  by  the  fact  that  she  shunned  the  store,  and 
that  he  soon  heard  of  her  as  a  belle  and  leader  in  the  ultra- 
fashionable  world.  He,  too,  bitterly  lamented  that  he  had 
ever  seen  her,  and  was  struggling  with  all  the  whole  power 
of  his  will  to  forget  her.  He  fiercely  resolved  that,  since 
she  wished  him  dead,  she  should  become  dead  to  him. 

As  the  weeks  passed  on,  he  apparently  succeeded 
better  than  she.  There  was  nothing  in  her  character,  as 
she  then  appeared,  that  appealed  to  anything  gentle  or 
generous.  She  seemed  so  proud,  so  strong  and  resolute 
in  her  choice  of  evil,  so  devoid  of  the  true  womanly 
nature,  as  he  had  learned  to  reverence  it  in  his  mother, 
that  he  could  not  pit\-,  much  less  respect  her,  and  even  his 
love  could  scarcely  survive  under  such  circumstances. 

When  she  began  coming  to  the  store  again,  though  his 
heart  beat  thick  and  fast  at  her  presence,  he  turned  his 
back  and  seemed  not  to  see  her,  or  made  an  errand  to  a 
remote  part  of  the  building. 

At  first  she  thought  this  "might  be  accident,  but  she 
soon  found  it  a  resolute  purpose  to  ignore  her  verj-  exist- 
f^nce. 

B}  I  eason  of  a  trait  said  to  be  peculiarly  feminine, 
certainly  peculiar  to  Christine,  this  was  only  the  more 
siimulating.  She  craved  all  the  more  that  which  was 
seemingly  denied. 


IF  HE  KNEW 


^b\ 


Accustomed  to  every  gratification,  to  see  all  yield  to 
her  wishes,  and  especially  to  regard  gentlemen  as  almost 
powerless  to  resist  her  beauty,  this  one  stern,  averted 
face  became  to  her-  infinitely  more  attractive  than  all  the 
rest  in  the  world. 

"That  he  so  steadily  avoids  me,  proves  that  he  is 
an)rthing  but  indifferent,"  she  said  one  day. 

She  condemned  her  visits  to  the  store,  and  often 
repeated  to  herself  what  utter  folly  it  was,  but  a  secret 
powerful  magnetism  drew  her  thither  in  spite  of  herself 

Dennis,  too,  soon  noticed  that  she  came  quite  often, 
and  the  fact  awakened  a  faint  hope  within  him.  He 
learned  that  his  love  was  not  dead,  but  only  chilled  and 
chained  by  circumstances  and  his  own  strong  will.  True, 
apart  from  the  fact  of  her  coming,  she  gave  him  no 
encouragement. 

3he  was  as  distant  and  seemingly  oblivious  of  his 
existence  as  he  of  hers,  but  love  can  gather  hope  from 
a  marvellously  little  thing. 

But  one  day  Christine  detected  her  father  watching  her 
movements  with  the  keenest  scrutiny,  and  after  that  she 
came  more  and  more  rarely. 

The  hope  that  for  a  moment  had  tinged  the  darkness 
that  had  gathered  around  Dennis,  died  away  like  the  me- 
teor's transient  light. 

He  went  into  society  very  little  after  his  sickness,  and 
shunned  large  companies.  He  preferred  spending  his 
evenings  with  his  mother  and  in  study.  The  Winthrops 
were  gone,  having  removed  to  their  old  home  in  Boston, 
and  .he  had  not  formed  very  intimate  acquaintances  else- 
where. Moreover,  his  limited  circle,  though  of  the  best 
and  most  refined,  was  not  one  in  which  Christine  often 
appeared. 

But  one  evening  his  cheek  paled  and  his  heart  fluttered 


362  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

as  he  saw  her  entering  the  parlors  of  a  lady  where  he  had 
been  invited  to  meet  a  few  friends.  For  some  little  time 
he  studiously  avoided  her,  but  at  last  his  hostess,  with 
well-meant  zeal,  formally  presented  him. 

They  bowed  very  politely  and  very  coldly.  The  lady 
surmised  that  Christine  did  not  care  about  the  acquaint- 
ance of  her  father's  clerk,  and  so  brought  them  no  more 
together.  But  Christine  was  pained  by  Dennis'  icy  manner, 
and  saw  that  she  was  thoroughly  misunderstood.  When 
asked  to  sing,  she  chose  a  rather  significant  ditty  : 

Ripple,  sparkle,  rapid  stream. 
Every  dancing  wavelet  gleam 

In  the  noonday  bright ; 
Children  think  the  surface  glow 
Reaches  to  the  depths  below. 

Hidden  from  the  light. 

Human  faces  often  seem 
Like  the  sparkle  of  the  stream. 

In  the  social  glare  ; 
Some  assert,  in  wisdom's  guise, 
(Look  they  not  with  children's  eyes?) 

All  is  surface  there. 

As  she  rose  from  the  piano  her  glance  met  his  with 
something  like  meaning  in  it,  he  imagined.  He  started, 
flushed,  and  his  face  became  full  of  eager  questioning.  But 
her  father  was  on  the  watch  also,  and  placing  his  daughter's 
hand  within  his  arm,  led  her  into  the  front  parlor,  and  soon 
after  they  pleaded  another  engagement  and  vanished 
altogether. 

No  chance  for  explanation  came,  and  soon  a  new  and 
all-absorbing  anxiety  filled  Dennis'  heart,  and  the  shadow 
of  the  greatest  sorrow  that  he  had  yet  experienced  daily 
grew  nearer. 


CHAPTER  XL. 

THE  GATES  OPEN. 

At  Dennis'  request,  Dr.  Arten  called  and  carefully  in- 
quired into  Mrs.  Fleet's  symptoms.  Her  son  stood  anx 
iously  by  awaiting  the  result  of  the  examination.  At  last 
the  physician  said  cheerily : 

"  There  is  no  immediate  occasion  for  alarm  here.  I 
am  sorry  to  say  that  your  mother's  lungs  are  far  from 
strong,  but  they  may  carry  her  through  many  comfortable 
years  yet  I  will  prescribe  tonics,  and  you  may  hope  for 
the  best  But  mark  this  well,  she  must  avoid  exposure.  A 
severe  cold  might  be  most  serious  in  its  consequences." 

How  easy  to  say,  "Do  not  take  cold."  How  many 
whose  lives  were  at  stake,  sought  to  heed  and  obey  the 
warning,  but  all  in  vain.  Under  Dr.  Arten's  tonics,  Mrs. 
Fleet  grew  stronger,  and  Dennis  rejoiced  over  the  improve- 
ment. But  in  one  of  the  sudden  changes  attendant  on  the 
breaking  up  of  winter,  the  dreaded  cold  was  taken,  and  it 
soon  developed  into  acute  pneumonia. 

For  a  few  days  she  was  very  sick,  and  Dennis  never  left 
her  side.  In  the  intervals  of  pain  and  fever  she  would 
smile  at  him  and  whisper : 

"The  harbor  is  near.  This  rough  weather  cannot  last 
much  longer." 

"  Mother,  do  not  leave  us  ;  we  cannot  spare  you/'  ever 
pleaded  her  son. 

Contrary  to  her  expectations  however,  she  rallied,  but 
continued  in  a  very  weak  and  feeble  state.     Dennis  was  able 


364  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY.      • 

to  resume  his  duties  in  the  store,  and  he  hoped  and  tried 
to  believe  that  the  warm  spring  and  summer  days  soon  to 
come  would  renew  his  mother's  strength.  But  every  day 
she  grew  feebler  and  Dr.  Arten  shook  his  head. 

The  Bruders  were  very  kind,  and  it  was  astonishing 
how  much  Mrs.  Bruder,  though  burdened  with  her  large 
family,  found  time  to  do.  If  Mrs.  Fleet  had  been  her  own 
mother  she  could  not  have  been  the  object  of  more  loving 
solicitude.  Mr.  Bruder  was  devotion  itself.  He  removed 
his  easel  to  an  attic  room  in  Mrs.  Fleet's  house,  and  every 
hour  of  Dennis'  absence  heard  him  say  : 

"  Vat  I  do  for  you  now  ?  I  feel  no  goot  unless  I  do 
sometink." 

Some  little  time  after  Mrs.  Fleet  was  taken  sick  a 
mystery  arose.  The  most  exquisite  flowers  and  fruit  were 
left  at  the  house  from  time  to  time,  marked  in  a  bold 
manly  hand,  "  For  Mrs  Fleet."  But  all  efforts  to  discover 
their  source  failed. 

The  readers  will  guess  that  Christine  was  the  donor, 
and  Dennis  hoped  it,  though,  he  admitted  to  himself,  with 
little  reason. 

Mrs.  Fleet  had  not  much  pain.  She  seemed  gently 
wafted  as  by  an  ebbing  tide  away  from  time  and  earth. 
Kindly  but  firmly  she  sought  to  prepare  Dennis'  mind  for 
the  change  soon  to  take  place.  At  first  he  could  not 
endure  its  mention,  but  she  said  earnestly : 

"  My  son,  I  am  not  dying.  I  am  just  entering  on  the 
true,  real,  eternal  life — a  life  which  is  as  much  beyond  this 
poor  feeble  existence  as  the  sun  is  brighter  than  a  glow- 
worm I  shall  soon  clasp  my  dear  husband  to  my  heart 
tgain,  and,  oh,  ecstasy,  I  shall  soon  in  reality  see  the 
Saviour  that  I  now  see  ahnost  continually  in  vision." 

Then  again  she  would  turn  towards  her  earthly  treas- 
ures with  unutterable  yearning  and  tenderness. 


THE  GATES  OrLJN.  365 

"  Oh,  that  I  could  gather  you  up  in  my  arms  and  take 
you  all  with  me,"  she  would  often  exclaim.  Many  times 
during  the  day  she  would  call  the  little  girls  from  their 
play  and  kiss  their  wondering  faces. 

One  evening  Dennis  came  home  and  found  a  vase  of 
flowers,  with  a  green  background  of  mint,  at  his  mother's 
bedside.  Their  delicate  fragrance  greeted  him  as  soon  as 
he  entered.  As  he  sat  by  her  side  holding  her  hand,  he 
said  softly : 

"  Mother,  are  not  these  sprays  of  mint  rather  unusual 
in  a  bouquet  ?  Has  the  plant  any  special  meaning  ?  I  have 
noticed  it  before  mingled  with  these  mysterious  flowers." 

She  smiled  and  answered  : 

"  When  I  was  a  girl  its  language  was,  Let  us  be  friends 
again." 

"  Do  you  think — can  it  be  possible  that  she  sends 
them  ? "  said  he  in  a  low  hesitating  tone. 

"  Prayer  is  mighty,  my  son." 

"And  have  you  been  praying  for  her  all  this  time, 
mother  ? " 

"  Yes,  and  will  continue  to  do  so  to  the  last." 

"  Oh  mother,  I  have  lost  hope.  My  heart  has  been 
full  of  bitterness  toward  her.  and  I  have  felt  that  God  was 
against  the  whole  thing." 

"  God  is  not  against  her  learning  to  know  Him,  which 
is  life.  Jesus  has  loved  her  all  the  time,  and  she  has 
wronged  Him  more  than  you." 

Dennis  bowed  his  head  on  his  mother's  hand,  and  she 
felt  hot  tears  fall  upon  it.     At  last  he  murmured: 

"  You  are  indeed  going  to  heaven  soon,  dear  mother, 
for  your  language  is  not  of  earth.  When  will  such  a  spirit 
dwell  within  me  ? " 

"  Again  remember  your  mother's  words,"  she  answered 
gently  ;  "  prayer  is  mighty." 
]6* 


366  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  Mother,"  said  he  with  a  sudden  earnestness,  **  do  ycm 
think  you  can  pray  for  us  in  heaven  ? " 

"I  know  of  no  reason  to  the  contrary." 

"Then  I  know  you  will,  and  the  belief  will  ever  be  a 
gource  of  hope  and  strength." 

Mrs.  Fleet  was  now  passing  through  the  land  of  Beulah. 
To  her  strong  spiritual  vision,  the  glories  of  the  other 
shore  seemed  present,  and  at  times  she  thought  that  she 
really  heard  music ;  again  it  would  seem  as  if  her  Saviour 
had  entered  the  plain  little  room,  as  He  did  the  humble 
home  at  Bethany. 

Her  thoughts  ran  much  on  Christine.  One  day  she 
wrote  feebly : 

"Would  Miss  Ludolph  be  willing  to  come  and  see  a 
dying  woman  ?  Ethel  Fleet." 

Mr.  Bruder  carried  it,  but  most  unfortunately  Christine 
was  out,  so  that  her  maid,  ever  on  the  alert  to  earn  the 
price  of  her  treachery,  received  it.  It  was  slightly  sealed. 
She  opened  it,  and  saw  from  its  contents  that  it  must  be 
given  to  Mr.  Ludolph.  He  with  a  frown  committed  it  to 
the  flames. 

"  I  have  written  to  her,"  she  whispered  to  her  son  in 
the  evening,  "  and  think  she  will  come  to  see  me," 

Dennis  was  sleepless  that  night,  through  his  hope 
and  eager  expectation.  The  following  day,  and  the  next 
passed,  and  she  came  not. 

"  I  was  right,"  exclaimed  he  bitterly.  "  She  is  utterly 
heartless.  It  was  not  she  who  sent  the  flowers.  Who 
that  is  human  would  have  refused  such  a  request !  Waste 
no  more  thought  upon  her,  for  she  is  unworthy,  and  it  is 
all  in  vain.'' 

"  No  ! "  said  Mrs.  Fleet  in  sudden  energy.  "  It  is  not 
m  vain.  Have  I  not  prayed  again  and  again  ?  and  shall  J 
Soubt  God  ? 


THE  GATES  OPEN.  367 

"Your  faith  is  stronger  than  mine,"  he  answered  in 
deep  despondency. 

"  God's  time  is  not  always  ours,"  she  answered  gently. 

But  an  angry  fire  lurked  in  Dennis'  eyes,  and  he  mut- 
tered to  himself  as  he  went  to  his  room  :  "  She  has  shap- 
ped  the  last  slender  cord  that  bound  me  to  her.  I  cciuld 
endure  about  anything  myself,  but  that  she  should  refuse 
to  visit  my  dying  mother  proves  her  a  monster,  with  all 
her  beauty." 

As  he  was  leaving  in  the  morning,  his  mother  whis- 
pered gently  :  "  Who  was  it  that  said,  *  Father  forgive 
them,  they  know  not  what  they  do ? '" 

"  Ah,  but  she  does  know,"  said  he  bitterly.  "  I  can 
forgive  about  everything  against  myself,  but  not  slights  to 
you." 

"The  time  will  come  when  you  will  forgive  everything, 
my  son." 

"  Not  till  there  is  acknowledgment  and  sorrow  for  the 
wrong,"  answered  he  sternly.  Then  with  a  sudden  burst 
of  tenderness  added : '"  Good-bye,  darling  mother.  I  will 
try  to  do  anything  you  wish,  even  though  it  is  impossi- 
ble." 

But  his  love,  through  Janette's  treachery,  suffered  the 
deepest  wound  it  had  yet  received. 

Christine,  of  her  own  accord,  had  almost  decided  to 
call  upon  Mrs.  Fleet,  but  before  she  could  carry  out  her 
purpose,  while  hastily  coming  downstairs  one  day,  she 
sprained  her  ankle,  and  was  confined  to  her  room  some 
little  time. 

She  sent  Janette  with  orders  for  the  flowers,  who,  at 
once  surmising  their  destination,  said  to  the  florist  that 
she  V  as  Miss  Ludolph's  confidential  maid,  and  would  carry 
them  to  tkose  for  whom  they  were  designed.  He,  thinking 
it  "  all  right,"  gave  them  to  her,  ard  she  took  them  to  a 


368  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

Frenchman  in  the  same  trade  whom  she  kneA*,  and  sold 
them  at  half-price,  giving  him  a  significant  sign  to  ask  no 
questions.  To  the  same  market  she  brought  the  fruit ;  so 
from  that  time  they  as  mysteriously  ceased  as  they  had  ap 
peared  at  Mrs.  Fleet's  bedside. 

But  Dennis  was  so  anxious,  and  his  mother  was  now 
failing  so  rapidly,  that  he  scarcely  noted  this  fact  The 
warm  spring  days  seemed  rather  to  enervate  than  strengthen 
her.  He  longed  to  stay  with  her  constantly,  but  his  daily 
labor  was  necessarj'  to  secure  the  comforts  needful  to  an  in- 
valid. Every  morning  he  bade  her  a  most  tender  adieu,  and 
during  the  day  often  sent  Ernst  to  inquire  how  she  was. 

One  evening,  Christine  ventured  to  send  Janette  on 
the  same  errand,  and  impatiently  awaited  her  return.  At 
last  she  came,  appearing  as  if  flushed  and  angry. 

"  Whom  did  you  see  ? "  asked  Christine  eagerly. 

"  I  saw  Mr.  Fleet  himself." 

"  Well,  what  did  he  say  ?  " 

"  He  bite  his  lip,  firown,  and  say,  '  Dare  is  no  answer,' 
and  turn  on  his  heel  into  de  house." 

It  was  now  Christine's  turn  to  be  angry.  "  What ! " 
she  exclaimed,  "  does  his  Bible  teach  him  to  forget  and 
forgive  nothing?  Can  it  be,  that  he,  like  the  rest  of  them, 
believes  and  acts  on  only  such  parts  as  are  to  his  mood  ? " 

"  I  don't  know  nothing  about  him,"  said  the  m?id, 
"only  I  don't  want  to  go  dare  again." 

"  You  need  not,"  was  the  brief  replv. 

After  a  long,  bitter  rever}-,  she  sighed  : 

"  Ah,  well,  thus  we  drift  apart.  But  it  .s  just  as  well, 
for  apart  we  must  cer  be." 

One  morning  early  in  May,  Mrs.  Fleet  was  very  weak, 
and  Dennis  left  her  with  painful  misgivings.  During  the 
morning  he  sent  Ernsi  to  see  how  she  was,  an4  he  soon 
returned,  with  wild  fAce,  cr}-ing,  "  Come  home  quick  I  " 


THE  GATES  OPEN.  369 

Breaking  abruptly  from  his  startled  customer,  Dennis 
soon  reached  his  mother's  side.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bruder 
were  sobbing  at  the  foot  of  the  bed,  and  the  girls  were 
pleading  piteously  on  either  side  : 

"  Oh,  mother,  please  don't  go  away." 

"  Hush  !  "  said  Dennis  solemnly.  Awed  by  lis  man- 
ner, all  became  comparatively  silent  He  bent  over  the 
bed,  and  said  : 

"  Mother,  you  are  leaving  us  at  last" 

The  voice  of  her  beloved  son  rallied  the  dying  woman's 
wandering  mind.  After  a  moment,  she  recognized  him, 
smiled  faintly,  and  whispered  : 

"  Yes,  I  think  I  am — kiss  me — good-bye.  Bring — the 
children.  Jesus — take  care — my  little — lambs.  Good-bye 
— true — honest  friends — meet  me — heaven.  Dennis — these 
children — your  charge — bring  them  home — to  me.  Pray 
for  Aer.  I  don't  know — why — she  seems  very — near  to 
me.  Farewell — my  good — true — son — mother's  blessing — 
God's  blessing — ever  rest — on  you." 

Her  eyes  closed,  and  she  fell  into  a  gentle  sleep. 

"  She  vake  no  more  in  dis  vorld,"  said  Mrs.  Bruder  in 
an  awed  tune. 

Mr.  Bruder,  unable  to  control  his  feelings  any  longer, 
hurried  from  the  room.  His  wife,  with  streaming  eyes, 
silently  dressed  the  little  girls,  and  took  them  home  with 
her,  crying  piteously  all  the  way  for  mamma. 

Pale,  tearless,  motionless,  Dennis  sat,  hour  after  hour, 
holding  his  mother's  hand.  He  noted  that  her  pulse  grew 
more  and  more  feeble.  At  last  the  sun  in  setting  broke 
tiirough  the  clouds  that  had  obscured  it  all  day,  and  filled 
the  room  with  a  sudden  glory. 

To  Dennis'  great  surprise,  his  mother's  eyes  opened 
wide,  with  the  strange,  far-off  look  they  ever  had  when  she 
was  picturing  to  herself  the  unknown  world. 


370  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

Her  lips  moved — he  bent  over  her  and  caught  the 
words  :  "  Hark  !  hear ! — It  never  was  so  sweet  before. 
See  the  angels — thronging  toward  me — they  never  came 
so  near  before." 

Then  a  smile  of  joy  and  welcome  lighted  up  her  wau 
features,  and  she  whispered  : 

"  O,  Dennis,  husband — are  we  united  once  more  ? " 

Suddenly  there  was  a  look  of  ecstasy  such  as  her  son  had 
never  seen  on  any  human  face,  and  she  cried  almost  aloud  : 

"  Jesus — my  Saviour ! "  and  received,  as  it  were,  directly 
in  His  arms  she  passed  from  earth. 

We  touch  briefly  on  the  scenes  that  followed.  Dennis 
took  the  body  of  his  mother  to  her  old  home,  and  buried  it 
under  the  wide-spreading  elm  in  the  village  church-yard, 
where  as  a  happy  child  and  blooming  maiden  she  had  often 
sat  between  the  services.  It  was  his  purpose  to  remove 
the  remains  of  his  father  and  place  them  by  her  side  as 
soon  as  he  could  afford  it. 

His  little  sisters  accompanied  him  east,  and  he  found  a 
home  for  them  with  a  sister  of  his  mother,  who,  though  in 
rather  straitened  circumstances,  was  a  good,  kind.  Christian 
lady.  Dennis'  salary  was  not  large,  but  sufficient  to  insure 
that  his  sisters  would  be  no  burden  to  his  aunt,  and  he  also 
arranged  that  the  small  annuity  should  be  paid  for  their 
benefit. 

It  was  hard  parting  from  his  sisters,  whose  little  hearts 
seemed  breaking  at  what  seefned  a  new  loss  and  bereave- 
ment. 

"  How  can  I  leave  them  ! "  he  exclaimed  with  tears 
falling  fast  from  his  eyes. 

"  They  are  children,*'  said  his  aunt  soothingly,  "  and 
will  forget  their  troubles  in  a  few  days." 

And  so  it  proved ;  but  Dennis,  with  a  sore  heart,  and 
feeling  very  lonely,  returned  to  Chicago. 


THE  GATES  OPEN.  37, 

When  at  last  Christine  got  out  again,  she  learned  from 
Ernst  at  the  store  that  Dennis'  mother  had  died,  and  he 
had  taken  the  remains  and  his  sisters  east.  In  his  sorrow 
he  seemed  doubly  interesting  to  her. 

"How  I  wish  it  were  in  my  power  to  cheer  and  comfoil 
him,"  she  sighed,  "  and  yet  I  fear  my  power  to  do  this  is 
less  than  that  of  any  one  else.  In  very  truth  he  seems  to 
despise  and  hate  me  now.  The  barriers  between  us  grow 
stronger  and  higher  every  day.  How  different  it  all  might 
have  been  if —  But  what  is  the  use  of  these  wretched  *  ifs  ? ' 
What  is  the  use  of  resisting  this  blind  remorseless  fate  that 
brings  happiness  to  one  and  crushes  another  ? " 

Wearily  and  despondingly  she  rode  back  to  the  elegant 
home  where  she  found  so  little  enjoyment. 

But  whom  should  she  meet  there  but  Mrs.  Von  Brakhiera 
from  New  York,  bound  westward  with  a  gay  party  on  a  trip 
to  the  Rocky  Mountains  and  California.  They  had  stop- 
ped to  spend  a  few  days  in  Chicago  and  were  determined 
to  take  Christine  on  with  them.  Her  father  also  strongly 
seconded  the  plan.  Though  Christine  surmised  his  motive 
she  did  not  care  to  resist.  Since  she  would  soon  be  sep- 
arated from  Dennis  forever,  the  less  she  saw  of  him,  the 
less  would  be  the  pain.  Moreover,  her  sore  and  heavy 
heart  welcomed  any  change  that  would  cause  forgetfulness ; 
and  so  it  was  speedily  arranged. 

Mrs.  Von  Brakhiem  and  her  party  quite  took  possession 
of  the  Ludolph  mansion,  and  often  made  it  echo  with  gayety. 

On  the  evening  of  the  day  that  Dennis  would  bury  his 
mother,  Ernst  came  over  at  Mr.  Ludolph's  request  to  carry 
a  message.  He  found  the  house  the  scene  of  a  fashionable 
re\el.  There  was  music  and  dancing  in  the  parlors,  and 
from  the  dining-room  the  clink  of  glasses  and  loud  peal? 
of  laughter  proved  that  this  was  not  Christine's  ideal  of  an 
entertainment  as  she  had  portrayed  it  to  her  father  on  ^ 


372 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY 


former  occasion.  In  truth,  she  had  little  to  do  with  the 
affair  ;  it  was  quite  impromptu,  and  Mr.  Ludolph  and  Mrs. 
Von  Brakhiem  were  responsible  for  it. 

But  Ernst  could  not  know  this,  and  to  him  it  seemed 
shocking.  The  simple  funeral  service  taking  place  on  that 
day  in  the  distant  New  England  village  had  never  been 
absent  from  his  thoughts  a  moment.  Since  early  morning 
he  had  gone  about  with  his  little  face  composed  to  funeral 
gravity. 

His  simple,  warm-hearted  parents  felt  that  they  could 
only  show  proper  respect  for  the  occasion  by  the  deepest 
gloom.  Their  rooms  were  arranged  in  stiff  and  formal 
manner  with  crape  here  and  there.  All  unnecessary  work 
ceased,  and  the  children,  forbidden  to  play,  were  dressed 
in  mourning  as  far  as  possible,  and  made  to  sit  in  solemn 
and  dreadful  state  all  day.  It  would  not  have  surprised 
Ernst  if  the  whole  city  had  gone  in  mourning.  Therefore 
the  revelry  at  the  Ludolph  mansion  seemed  to  him  heart- 
less and  awful  beyond  measure,  and  nearly  the  first  thing 
he  told  Dennis  on  his  return  was  that  they  !iad  had  "  a 
great  dancing  and  drinking  party  the  night  of  the  funeral, 
at  Mr.  Ludolph's."  Then  tr}'ing  to  find  some  explanation 
for  what  seemed  to  him  such  a  strange  and  wicked  thing, 
he  suggested,  "  Perhaps  they  meant  it  for  a  wake." 

Poor  little  Ernst's  ideas  of  the  world,  outside  of  his 
home,  had  been  gathered  from  a  very  low  neighborhood. 

He  also  handed  Dennis  a  letter  that  Mr.  Ludolph  re- 
quested to  be  given  him  on  his  return,  which  read  as  fol- 
lows : 

"Chicago,  May  6th,  1871. 

"  lliave  been  compelled  to  supply  your  place  in  your 
absence  :  therefore  your  services  will  be  no  longer  needed 
at  this  store.  Inclosed  you  will  find  a  check  for  the  small 
balance  still  due  you.  At'cusT  Lrooi.i'H." 


THE  GATES  OPEN.  373 

Dennis'  brow  grew  very  dark,  and  in  bitter  soliloquy 
he  said,  half  aloud,  as  he  strode  up  and  down  his  little  room 
in  great  agitation : 

"And  so  it  all  ends  1  The  girl  at  whose  side  ni}  mother 
would  have  watched  in  the  most  dangerous  and  loathsome 
of  diseases,  the  woman  of  ice  whom  I  sought  to  melt  and 
render  human  by  as  warm,  true  love,  as  ever  man  lavished 
on  one  who  rewarded  his  affection — this  beautiful  monster 
will  not  even  visit  my  mother  when  dying.  She  holds  a 
revel  the  day  of  the  funeral,  and  now,  through  her  influence, 
no  doubt,  I  am  robbed  of  the  chance  of  winning  honest 
bread.  She  cannot  even  endure  the  sight  of  the  man  who 
once  told  her  the  unvarnished  truth.  Poor  as  you  deem 
me,  Christine  Ludolph,  with  God's  help,  not  many  years 
shall  pass  before  it  will  be  condescension  on  my  part  to 
recognize  you." 

He  would  not  even  go  to  the  store  again.  The  Bru- 
ders,  having  heard  what  had  occurred,  took  Ernst  away 
also ;  but  Dennis  soon  found  him  a  better  situation  else- 
where. 

The  day  on  which  Dennis  returned,  Christine  was 
speeding  in  a  palace-car  toward  the  Rocky  Mountains, 
outwardly  gay,  determined  to  enjoy  herself  and  carry  out 
her  reckless  purpose  to  get  the  most  possible  out  of  life, 
cost  what  it  might. 

If  she  had  been  a  shallow  girl,  thoughtless  and  vain, 
with  only  mind  enough  to  take  in  the  events  of  the  passing 
moment,  she  might  have  bought  many  fleeting  pleasures 
with  her  abundant  wealth.  But  this  she  was  not,  with  all 
her  faults,  and  wherever  she  went,  in  the  midst  of  gayest 
scenes,  and  in  the  presence  of  the  grandest  and  most  in- 
spiring scenery,  thought  and  memory,  like  two  spectres  that 
no  spell  could  lay,  haunted  her  and  robbed  her  of  peace 
and   anything  like   happiness.     Though   possessing    the 


374 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


means  of  gratifying  every  whim,  though  restrained  by  no 
scruples  from  doing  what  she  chose,  she  felt  that  all 
around  were  getting  more  from  life  than  she. 

During  her  absence  she  experienced  a  sudden  and 
severe  attack  of  illness.  Her  friends  were  much  alarmed 
about  her,  and  she  far  more  about  herself.  All  her  old 
terror  returned.  In  one  respect  she  was  like  her  mother  ; 
she  had  no  physical  courage,  but  shrank  with  inexpressi- 
ble dread  from  danger,  pain,  and  death.  Again  the  black- 
ness of  darkness  gathered  round  her,  and  not  one  in  the 
gay  pleasure  part}'  could  say  a  word  to  her. 

She  recovered,  and  soon  regained  her  usual  health,  but 
her  self-confidence  was  more  thoroughly  shaken.  She  felt 
like  one  in  a  little  cockle-shell  boat  out  upon  a  shoreless 
ocean.  While  the  treacherous  sea  remained  calm,  all  might 
be  well,  but  she  knew  a  storm  would  soon  arise,  and  that  she 
must  go  down,  beyond  hope  and  remedy.  Again,  she  had 
been  taught  how  suddenly,  how  unexpectedly,  that  storm 
might  rise. 

Dennis  resolved  at  once  to  enter  on  the  career  of  an 
artist.  He  sold  to  Mr.  Frame,  at  a  moderate  price,  some 
paintings  and  sketchings  he  had  made.  He  rented  a  small 
room  that  became  his  studio,  sleeping  apartment — in  brief, 
his  home,  and  then  went  to  work  with  all  the  ordinary  in- 
centives to  success  intensified  by  his  purpose  to  reach  a 
social  height  that  would  compel  Christine  to  look  upward, 
if  their  acquaintance  was  renewed. 

Disappointment  in  love  is  one  of  the  severest  tests  of 
character  in  man  or  woman.  Some  sink  into  weak  senti- 
mentality, and  mope  and  languish  ;  some  become  listless, 
apathetic,  and  float  down  the  current  of  existence  like  drift- 
wood. Men  are  often  harsh  and  cynical,  and  rail  at  the 
sex  to  which  their  mothers  and  sisters  belong.  Some- 
rimes  a  man   inflicts  a  well-nigh  fatal  wound,  and  leaves 


THE  GATES  OPEN.  375 

his  victim  to  cure  it  as  best  she  may.  From  that  time  forth 
she  may  be  like  the  wronged  Indian,  who  slays  as  many 
white  men  as  he  can.  Not  a  few,  on  finding  the)'  cannot  en- 
ter the  beautiful  paradise  of  happy  love,  plunge  into  imbru 
ting  vice,  and  drown  not  only  their  disappointment,  but 
themselves  in  dissipation.  Their  course  is  like  that  of  some 
who  deem  that  the  best  way  to  cure  a  wound  or  end  a 
disease  is  to  kill  the  patient  as  soon  as  possible.  If  women 
have  true  metal  in  them  (and  they  usually  have)  they  become 
unselfishly  devoted  to  others,  and  by  gentle,  self-denying 
ways  seek  to  impart  to  those  about  them  the  happiness 
denied  to  themselves. 

But  with  all  manly  young  men,  the  instinct  of  Dennis 
is  perhaps  the  most  common.  They  will  rise,  shine,  and 
dazzle  the  eyes  that  once  looked  scornfully  or  indifferently 
at  them. 

As  he  worked  patiently  at  his  noble  calling,  this  smaller 
ambition  was  gradually  lost  in  the  nobler,  broader  one,  to 
be  a  true  artist  and  good  man. 

During  his  illness,  some  gentlemen  of  large  wealth 
and  liberality,  who  wished  to  stimulate  and  develop  the 
native  artistic  talent  of  their  city,  offered  a  prize  of  $2,000 
for  the  finest  picture  painted  during  the  year,  the  artist 
also  having  the  privilege  of  selling  his  work. 

On  his  return  after  his  illness,  Dennis  heard  of  this, 
and  determined  to  be  one  of  the  competitors.  He  applied 
to  Mr.  Consoor,  who  had  the  matter  in  charge,  for  permis- 
sion to  enter  the  lists,  which  that  gentleman  granted  rather 
doubtfully.  He  had  known  Dennis  only  as  a  critic,  not  as 
an  artist.  But,  having  gained  his  point,  Dennis  went 
earnestly  to  work  on  the  emblematic  painting  he  had  re- 
solved upon,  and  with  what  success  the  following  chapters 
will  show. 

His  mother's  sickness  and  death,  of  course,  put  a  com- 


3.76  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

plete  stop  to  his  artistic  labors  for  a  time,  but  on  entering 
his  new  career  as  an  artist,  he  gave  himself  wholly  to  this 
effort. 

The  day  for  exhibition  and  decision  was  fixed  on  Sat- 
urday morning,  October  7th,  187 1. 


CHAPTER  XLI. 

SUSIE   WINTHROP   APPEARS   AGAIN. 

Our  story  passes  rapidly  over  the  scenes  and  events 
of  the  summer  and  fall  of  '71.  Another  heavy  blow  fell 
upon  Dennis,  in  the  loss  of  his  old  friend  and  instructor, 
Mr.  Bruder. 

By  prayer  and  effort,  his  own  and  others',  he  was  saved 
morally  and  spiritually,  but  he  had  been  greatly  shattered 
by  past  excess.  He  was  attacked  by  typhoid  fever,  and 
after  a  few  days'  illness  died.  Recovery  from  this  disease 
depends  largely  upon  strength  and  purity  of  constitution. 
But  every  one  of  the  innumerable  glasses  of  liquor  that 
poor  Bruder  had  swallowed  robbed  him  of  these,  and  so 
there  was  no  constitution  to  resist. 

Under  her  husband's  improved  finances,  Mrs.  Bruder 
had  removed  to  comfortable  lodgings  in  Harrison  Street,  and 
these  she  determined  to  keep  if  possible,  dreading  for  the 
sake  of  her  children  the  influences  of  a  crowded  teneinent 
house.  Dennis  stood  by  her,  a  staunch  and  helpful  friend; 
Ernst  was  earning  a  good  little  sum  weekly,  and  by  hei 
rieedle  and  wash-tub  the  jmtient  woman  continued  the 
hard  battle  of  life  with  fair  prospects  of  success. 

Dennis'  studio  was  over  on  the  south  side,  at  the  top 
of  a  tal"  buildin<r  overlooking:  the  lake.       Even  before   the 


SUSIE  WINTHROP  APPEARS  AGAIN.  377 

early  summer  sun  rose  above  the  shining  waves  he  was  at 
his  easel,  and  so  accomplished  what  is  a  fair  day's  work 
before  many  of  his  profession  had  left  their  beds.  Though 
he  worked  hard,  and  many  hours,  he  still  worked  judi- 
ciously. Bent  upon  accomplishing  what  was  almost  impossi- 
ble within  the  limited  time  remaining,  he  determined,  with 
all  his  long  hours  of  labor.  Dr.  Arten  should  never  charge 
him  with  suicidal  tendencies  again.  Therefore  he  trained 
himself  mentally  and  morally  for  his  struggle  as  the  athlete 
does  physically. 

He  believed  in  the  truth  too  little  recognized  among 
brain-workers,  that  men  can  develop  themselves  into  splen- 
did mental  conditions,  wherein  they  can  accomplish  al- 
most double  their  ordinary  amount  of  labor. 

The  year  allotted  to  the  competitors  for  the  prize  to 
be  given  in  October  was  all  too  short  for  such  a  work  as  he 
had  attempted,  and  through  his  own,  his  mother's  and 
Mr.  Bruder's  illness,  he  had  lost  a  third  of  the  time,  but  in 
the  careful  and  skilful  manner  indicated  he  was  trying  to 
make  it  up. 

He  had  a  long  conversation  with  shrewd  old  Dr.  Arten^ 
who  began  to  take  quite  an  interest  in  him.  And  also  read 
several  books  ,on  hygiene.  Thus  he  worked  under  guid- 
ance of  reason,  science.  Christian  principle,  instead  of  mere 
impulse,  as  is  too  often  the  case  with  genius. 

In  the  absorption  of  his  task  he  withdrew  utterly  from 
society,  and,  with  the  exception  of  his  mission-class,  Chris 
tian  worship  on  Sabbath,  and  attendance  on  a  little-prayei 
meeting  in  a  neglected  quarter  during  the  week,  he  per- 
mitted no  other  demands  upon  his  time  and  thoughts. 

His  pictures  had  sold  for  sufficient  to  provide  for  his 
sisters  and  enable  him  to  live,  with  close  economy,  till  after 
the  prize  was  given,  and  then,  if  he  did  not  gain  it  (of  which 
he  was  not  at  all  sure),  his  painting  would  sell  for  enough 
to  meet  future  needs. 


378  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

And  so  we  leave  him  for  a  time  earnestly  at  work.  He 
was  like  a  ship  that  had  been  driven  hither  and  thither 
tempest-tossed  and  in  danger,  but  which,  on  reaching  a  clear 
sky  and  smooth  water  at  last,  finds  its  true  bearings,  and 
steadily  pursues  its  homeward  voyage. 

The  Christine  that  he  first  had  learned  to  lOve  in 
happy  unconsciousness  while  they  arranged  the  store 
together,  became  a  glorified,  artistic  ideal.  The  Christine 
he  had  learned  to  know  as  false  and  heartless,  was  now  to 
him  a  strange,  fascinating,  unwomanly  creature,  beautiful 
only  as  the  sirens  were  beautiful,  that  he  might  wreck 
himself  body  and  soul  before  her  unpitying  eyes.  He 
sought  to  banish   all  thought  of  her. 

Christine  returned  about  midsummer.  She  was  com- 
pelled to  note,  as  she  neared  her  native  city,  that  of  all  the 
objects  it  contained,  Dennis  Fleet  was  uppermost  in  her 
thoughts.  She  longed  to  go  to  the  store  and  see  him 
once  more,  even  though  it  should  be  only  at  a  distance, 
with  not  even  the  shadow  of  recognition  between  them. 
She  condemned  it  all  as  folly,  and  worse  than  in  vain,  but 
that  made  no  difference  to  her  heart ;  that  would  have  its 
way. 

Almost  trembling  with  excitement,  she  entered  the 
Art  Building  the  next  day,  and  glanced  around  with  a 
timidity  that  was  in  marked  contrast  to  her  usual  cold  and 
critical  glance.  But,  as  the  reader  knows,  Dennis  Fleet 
was  not  to  be  seen.  From  time  to  time  she  went  again, 
but  neither  he  nor  Ernst  appeared.  She  feared  that  for 
some  reason  he  had  left,  and  determined  to  learn  the 
truth.  Throwing  off  the  strange  timidity  and  resiiamt 
that  ever  embarrassed  her  where  he  was  concerned,  she 
said  to  Mr.  Schwartz  one  day : 

"  I  don't  like  the  way  that  picture  is  hung.  Where  is 
Mr.  Fleet?     I  believe  he  has  charge  of  that  department." 


SUSIE  WINTHROP  APPEARS  AGAIN.  37^ 

"  W  hy,  bless  you !  Miss  Ludolph,'"  replied  Mr. 
Schwartz,  with  a  look  of  surprise,  "  Mr.  Ludolph  dis- 
charged him  over  two  months  ago." 

"  Discharged  him !  what  for  ? " 

"  For  being  away  too  much,  I  heard, '  said  old  Schwai  tz 
with  a  shrug  indicating  that  that  might  be  the  reason  and 
might  not. 

Christine  came  to  the  store  but  rarely  thereafter,  for  it 
had  lost  its  chief  element  of  interest.  That  evening  she 
said  to  her  father  : 

"You  have  discharged  Mr.  Fleet?" 

"  Yes,"  was  the  brief  answer. 

"  May  I  ask  the  reason  ? " 

"  He  was  away  too  much." 

"  That  is  not  the  real  reason,"  she  said,  turning  sud- 
denly upon  him.  "  Father,  what  is  the  use  of  treating  me 
as  a  child  ?  What  is  the  use  of  trying  to  lock  things  up 
and  keep  them  from  me?  I  intend  to  go  to  Germany 
with  you  this  fall,  and  that  is  sufficient." 

With  a  courtly  smile  Mr.  Ludolph  replied:  "And  I 
have  lived  long  enough,  my  daughter,  to  know  that  what 
people  intend  and  what  they  do  are  two  very  different 
things." 

She  flushed  angrily  and  said  : 

"  It  was  most  unjust  to  discharge  him  as  you  did. 
Do  you  not  remember  that  he  offered  his  mother's  services 
as  nurse,  when  I  was  dreading  the  small-pox  ? " 

"  You  are  astonishingly  grateful  in  this  case,"  said  her 
father  with  a  meaning  that  Christine  understood  too  well, 
"  but  if  you  will  read  the  records  of  the  Ludolph  race,  you 
will  find  that  its  representatives  have  often  been  compelled 
to  do  things  somewhat  arbitrarily.  Since  you  have  been 
gone,  I  have  received  letters  announcing  the  death  of  my 
brother  and  his  wife.     I  am  now  Baron  Ludolph  1" 


380  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

But  Christine  was  too  angry  and  too  deeply  wounded 
to  note  this  information,  which  at  one  time  would  have 
elated  her  beyond  measure,  and  she  coldly  said : 

"It  is  a  pity  that  noblemen  are  compelled  to  lught  hu^ 
noble  deeds,"  and,  with  this  parting  arrow,  left  him. 

Even  her  father  winced,  and  then  with  a  heavy  frown 
said,  "  It  is  well  that  this  Yankee  youth  has  vanished  j 
still  the  utmost  vigilance  is  required." 

Again  he  saw  the  treacherous  maid,  and  promised 
increased  reward  if  she  would  be  watchful,  and  inform  hira 
of  every  movement  of  Christine. 

In  the  unobtrusive  ways  that  her  sensitive  pride  permit- 
ted, Christine  tried  to  find  out  what  had  become  of  Dennis, 
but  vainly.  She  offered  her  maid  a  large  reward  if  she 
would  discover  him,  but  she  had  been  promised  a  larger 
sum  not  to  find  him,  and  so  did  not.  The  impression  was 
given  that  he  had  left  the  city,  and  Christine  feared,  with  a 
sickening  dread,  she  would  never  see  him  again.  But  one 
evening  Mr.  Consoor  stated  a  fact,  in  a  casual  way,  that 
startled  both  Mr.  and  Miss  Ludolph.  ' 

He  was  calling  at  their  house,  and  they  were  discuss- 
ing the  coming  exhibition  of  the  pictures  of  those  who 
would  compete  for  the  prize. 

"  By  the  way,  your  former  clerk  and  porter  is  among 
the  competitors  ;  at  least  he  entered  the  lists  last  spring, 
but  I  have  lost  sight  of  him  since.  I  imagine  he  has  given 
it  up,  and  betaken  himself  to  tasks  more  within  the  range 
of  his  ability." 

The  eyes  of  father  and  daughter  met,  but  she  turned  to 
Mr.  Consoor,  and  said,  coolly,  though  with  a  face  somewhat 
flushed  : 

"  And  has  Chicago  so  much  artistic  talent  that  a  real 
genius  has  no  chance  here  ?  " 

"  I  was  not  aware  that  Mr.  Fleet  was  a  genius," 
answered  Mr.  Consoor. 


SUSIE  WINTHROP  APPEARS  AGAIN.  381 

"  I  think  he  will  satisfy  you  on  that  point,  and  that  you 
will  hear  from  him  before  the  exhibition  takes  place." 

Mr.  Ludolph  hastily  changed  the  subject,  but  he  had 
forebodings  as  to  the  future. 

Christine  went  to  her  room,  and  thought  for  a  long 
time ;  suddenly  she  sprang  up,  exclaiming  : 

"  He  told  me  his  story  once,  on  canvas,  I  will  now  tell 
him  mine." 

She  at  once  stretched  the  canvas  on  a  frame  for  a  small 
picture,  and  placed  it  on  an  easel,  that  she  might  com- 
mence with  the  dawn  of  day. 

During  the  following  weeks  she  worked  scarcely  less 
earnestly  and  patiently  than  Dennis.  The  door  was  locked 
when  she  painted,  and  before  she  left  the  studio  the  pic- 
ture was  hidden. 

She  meant  to  send  it  anonymously,  so  that  not  even  her 
father  should  know  its  authorship.  She  hoped  that  Dennis 
would  recognize  it. 

When  she  was  in  the  street  her  eyes  began  to  have  an 
eager,  wistful  look,  as  if  she  was  seeking  some  one.  She 
often  went  to  galleries,  and  other  resorts  of  artists,  but  in 
vain,  for  she  never  met  him,  though  at  times  he  was  nearer 
than  Evangeline's  lover,  the  dip  of  whose  oar  she  heard  in 
her  dream.  Though  she  knew,  if  she  met  him,  she  would 
probably  g^ve  not  one  encouraging  glance,  yet  the  instinct 
of  her  heart  was  just  as  strong. 

Mr.  Laidolph  told  the  maid  that  she  must  find  out  what 
Christine  was  painting,  and  she  tried  to  that  degree  that 
she  awakened  suspicion. 

On  one  occasion  Christine  turned  suddenly  on  her  and 
said : 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?     If  I  find  you   false— if  I  have 
even  good  reason  to  suspect  you,  I  will  turn  you  into  the 
street,  though  it  be  at  midnight !  " 
17 


382  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

And  the  maid  learned,  as  did  Mr.  Ludolph,  that  she 
was  not  dealing  with  a  child. 

At  last,  Monday,  October  2d,  dawned,  and  on  the  fol- 
lowing Saturday  the  prize  would  be  given.  All  the  long  day 
Dennis  was  employed  in  giving  the  finishing  touches  to  his 
picture.  It  was  not  worked  up  as  finely  as  he  could 
have  wished;  time  did  not  permit  this.  But  he  had  brought 
out  his  thought  vividly,  and  his  drawings  were  full  of  power. 

In  the  evening  he  walked  out  for  air  and  exercise. 
As  he  was  passing  one  of  the  large  hotels,  he  heard  his 
name  called.  Turning,  he  saw  on  the  steps,  radiant  with 
welcome,  his  old  friend,  Susie  Winthrop.  Her  hand  was 
on  the  arm  of  a  tall  gentleman,  who  seemed  to  have  eyes 
for  her  only.  But  in  her  old  impulsive  way  she  sprang 
down  the  steps,  and  gave  Dennis  a  grasp  of  the  hand  that 
did  his  lonely  heart  good.  Then,  leading  him  to  the 
scholarly-looking  gentleman,  who  was  looking  through  his 
glasses  in  mild  surprise,  she  said : 

"  Professor  Learned,  my  husband,  Mr.  Fleet.  This  is 
the  Dennis  Fleet  I  have  told  you  about  so  often." 

"Oh — h,"  said  the  Professor  in  prolonged  accents, 
while  a  genial  light  shone  through  the  rims  of  his  gold 
spectacles ;  "  Mr.  Fleet,  we  are  old  acquaintances,  though 
we  have  never  met  before.  If  I  were  a  jealous  man,  you 
are  the  only  one  I  should  fear." 

"And  we  mean  to  make  you  woefully  jealous  to-night, 
for  I  intend  to  have  Mr.  Fleet  dine  with  us  and  spend  the 
evening.  No,  I  will  take  no  excuse,  no  denial.  This  in- 
fatuated man  will  do  whatever  I  bid  him,  and  he  is  a  sort 
of  a  Greek  athlete.  If  you  do  not  come  right  along  I  shall 
command  him  to  lay  violent  hands  on  you  and  drag  you 
ignominioubiy  in." 

Dennis  was  only  too  glad  to  accept,  but  only  wished  to 
make  a  better  toilet. 

"  I  have  just  come  from  my  studio,"  he  said. 


SUSIE  WINTHROP  APPEARS  AGAIN.  383 

**  And  you  wish  to  go  and  divest  yourself  of  all  artis- 
tic flavor  and  become  commonplace.  Do  you  imagine  I 
will  permit  it?  No!  so  march  in  as  my  captive.  Who 
ever  heard  of  disputing  the  will  of  a  bride.  This  man" 
(pointing  up  to  the  tail  Professor)  "  never  dreams  of  it." 

Dennis  learned  that  she  was  on  her  wedding  trip,  and 
saw  that  she  was  happily  married,  and  proud  of  her  Pro- 
fessor, as  he  of  her. 

With  feminine  tact  she  drew  his  story  from  him,  and 
yet  it  was  but  a  meagre,  partial  story,  like  the  play  of  Ham- 
let with  Hamlet  left  out,  for  he  tried  to  be  wholly  silent 
on  his  love  and  disappointment.  But  in  no  respect  did 
he  deceive  Mrs.  Learned. 

Her  husband  went  away  for  a  little  time.  In  his  ab- 
sence she  asked  abruptly : 

"  Have  you  seen  Miss  Ludolph  lately  ?  " 

"  No !  "  said  Dennis  with  a  tell-tale  flush.  Seeing  her 
look  of  sympathy,  and  knowing  her  to  be  such  a  true  friend, 
the  impulsive  young  man  gave  his  confidence  almost  be- 
fore he  knew  it.  She  was  just  the  one  to  inspire  trust,  and 
he  was  very  lonely,  having  had  no  one  to  whom  he  could 
speak  his  deeper  feelings  since  his  mother  died. 

"  Miss  Ludolph  wronged  me  in  a  way  that  a  man  finds 
it  hard  to  forget  or  forgive,"  he  said  in  a  low  bitter  tone, 
"  but  I  should  have  tried  to  do  both  had  she  not  treated  my 
mother  most  inhumanly,"  and  he  told  his  story  over  again 
with  Hamlet  in. 

Mrs.  Learned  listened  with  breathless  interest,  and  then 
said: 

"  She  is  a  strange  girl,  and  that  plan  of  making  you  her 
unconscious  model  is  just  like  her,  though  it  was  both  cruel 
and  wicked.  And  yet,  Mr.  Fleet,  with  shame  for  my  sex 
I  admit  it,  how  many  would  have  flirted  with  you  to  the 
same  degree  from  mere  vanity  and  love  of  excitement.     I 


384  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

have  seen  Miss  Ludolph,  and  I  cannot  understand  her 
We  are  no  longer  the  friends  we  once  were,  but  I  cannot 
think  -her  utterly  heartless.  She  is  bent  upon  becoming  a 
great  aitist  at  any  cost,  and  I  sometimes  think  she  would 
sacrifice  herself  as  readily  as  any  one  else  for  this  purpose. 
She  looks  to  me  as  if  she  had  suffered,  and  she  has  lost 
much  of  her  old  haughty,  cold  manner,  save  when  some- 
thing calls  it  out.  Even  in  the  drawing-room  she  was  ab- 
stracted, as  if  her  thoughts  were  far  away.  You  are  a  man 
of  honor,  and  it  is  due  that  you  should  know  the  following 
facts.  Indeed  I  do  not  think  that  they  are  a  secret  any 
longer,  and  at  any  rate  they  will  soon  be  known.  If  Mr. 
Ludolph  were  in  Germany  he  would  be  a  noble.  It  is  his 
ntention  to  go  there  this  Fall,  and  take  his  wealth  and 
Christine  with  him,  and  assert  his  ancestral  titles  and  posi- 
tion. Christine  could  not  marry  in  this  land  without  in- 
curring her  father's  curse,  and  I  think  she  has  no  disposi- 
tion to  do  that, — her  ambition  is  fully  in  accord  with  his." 

"  Yes,"  said  Dennis  bitterly,  *'  and  where  other  women 
have  hearts,  she  has  ambition  only." 

The  Professor  returned  and  the  subject  was  dropped. 

Dennis  said,  on  leaving :  "  I  did  not  expect  to  show 
any  one  my  picture  till  it  was  placed  on  exhibition,  with 
the  others,  but  if  you  care  to  see  it,  you  may  to-morrow. 
Perhaps  you  can  make  some  suggestions  that  will  help 
me." 

They  eagerly  accepted  the  invitation,  and  came  the 
following  morning.  Dennis  watched  them  with  much 
solicitude. 

When  once  they  understood  his  thought,  their  delight 
and  admiration  knew  no  bounds. 

Tne  Professor  turned  and  stared  at  him  as  if  he  were 
an  entirely  different  person  from  the  unpretending  youtk 
who  was  introduced  on  the  preceding  evening. 


SUGGESTIVE  PICTURES  AND  A  PRIZE,  385 

"  If  you  do  not  get  the  prize,"  he  said  sententiously, 
"  you  have  a  great  deal  of  artistic  talent  in  Chicago." 
"  *  A  Daniel  come  to  judgment ! ' "  cried  his  wife. 


CHAPTER  XLII. 

SUGGESTIVE   PICTURES   AND   A   PRIZE. 

At  last  the  day  of  the  exhibition  dawned.  Dennis  had 
sent  his  picture,  directed  to  Mr.  Consoor,  with  his  name  in 
an  envelope  nailed  on  its  back.  No  one  was  to  know  who 
the  artists  were  till  after  the  decision  was  given.  Christine 
had  sent  hers  also,  but  no  name  whatever  was  in  the  en- 
velope on  the  back  of  her  picture. 

Quite  early  in  the  day,  the  doors  were  thrown  open  for 
all  who  chose  to  come.  The  committee  of  critics  had 
ample  time  given  them  for  their  decision,  and  at  one  p.  m. 
this  was  to  be  announced. 

Although  Dennis  went  quite  early,  he  found  that 
Christine  was  there  before  him.  She  stood  with  Professor 
and  Mrs.  Learned,  Mr.  Consoor  and  her  father,  before 
his  picture.  He  could  only  see  her  side  face,  and  she  was 
glancing  from  the  printed  explanation  in  the  catalogue  to 
the  painting.  Mrs.  Learned  was  also  at  her  side,  seeing 
to  it  that  no  point  was  unnoted.  Christine's  manner 
betrayed  intense  interest  and  excitement,  and  with  cause, 
for  again  Dennis  had  spoken  to  her  deepest  soul  in  the 
language  she  best  loved  and  understood. 

As  before  she  saw  two  emblematic  pictures  within  one 
fi  ame  merely  separated  by  a  plain  band  of  gold. 

The  first  presented  a  chateau  of  almost  palatial  pro- 
portions, heavy,  ornate,  but  stiff  and  quite  devoid  of  beauty 


386  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

It  appeared  the  abode  of  wealth  and  ancestral  greatness. 
Everything  about  the  place  indicated  lavish  expenditure. 
The  walks  and  trees  were  straight  and  formal,  the  flowers 
that  bloomed  here  and  there,  large  and  gaudy.  A  pairot 
hung  'a  a  gilded  cage  against  a  column  of  the  piazza.  No 
wild  songsters  fluttered  in  the  trees,  or  were  on  the  wing. 
Hills  shut  the  place  in  and  gave  it  a  narrow,  restricted  im- 
pression, and  the  sky  overhead  was  hard  and  brazen.  On 
the  lawn  stood  a  graceful  mountain  ash,  and  beneath  it 
were  two  figures.  The  first  was  that  of  a  man,  and  evidently 
the  master  of  the  place..  His  appearence  and  manner 
chiefly  indicated  pride,  iiaughtiness,  and  also  sensuality. 
He  had  broken  a  spray  from  the  ash  tree,  and  witR  a  con- 
descending air  was  in  the  act  of  handing  it  to  a  lady,  in 
the  portraiture  of  whom  Dennis  had  truly  displayed  great 
skill.  She  was  very  beautiful,  and  yet  there  was  nothing 
good  or  noble  in  her  face.  Her  proud  features  showed 
mingled  shame  and  reluctance  to  receive  the  gift  in  the 
manner  it  was  bestowed,  and  yet  she  was  receiving  it. 
The  significance  of  the  mountain  ash  is  "  Grandeur."  The 
whole  scene  was  the  portrayal,  in  the-beautiful  language  of 
Art,  of  a  worldly,  ambitious  marriage,  where  the  man  seeks 
mere  beauty,  and  the  woman  wealth  and  position,  love 
having  no  existence. 

It  possessed  an  eloquence  that  Christine  could  not 
resist,  and  she  fairly  loathed  the  alliance  she  knew  her 
father  would  expect  her  to  make  after  their  arrival  in 
Germany,  though  once  she  had  looked  forward  to  it  with 
eagerness  as  the  stepping-stone  to  her  highest  ambition. 

The  second  picture  was  a  beautiful  contrast.  Instead  of 
the  brazen  glare  of  the  first,  the  air  was  full  of  glimmering 
lights  and  shades,  and  thQ  sky  of  a  deep  transparent  blue. 
Far  up  a  nu)untain  side,  on  an  over-hanging  cliff,  grew  the 
same  graceful  ash-tree,  but  its  branches  were  entwined  with 


SUGGESTIVE  PICTURES  AND  A  PRIZE.  387 

vines  of  the  passion-flower  (signifying  "  holy  love ")  thai 
hung  around  in  slender  streamers.  On  a  jutting  rock,  with 
precarious  footing,  stood  a  young  man  reaching  up  to  grasp 
a  branch,  his  glance  bold  and  hopeful,  and  his  whole  man- 
ner full  of  daring  and  power.  He  had  evidently  had  a 
hard  climb  to  reach  his  present  position ;  his  hat  was  gone, 
and  his  dress  light  and  simple  and  adapted  to  the  severest 
effort. 

But  the  chief  figure  in  this  picture  also,  was  that  of  a 
young  girl  who  stood  near,  her  right  hand  clasping  his  left, 
and  steadying  and  sustaining  him  in  his  perilous  footing. 
The  wind  was  in  her  golden  hair,  and  swept  to  one  side 
her  light  airy  costume.  Her  pure,  noble  face  was  lifted  up 
toward  him^  rather  than  toward  the  spray  he  sought  to 
grasp,  and  an  eager  happy  light  shone  from  her  eyes.  She 
had  evidently  climbed  with  him  to  their  present  vantage- 
point,  and  now  her  little  hand  secured  and  strengthened 
him  as  he  sought  to  grasp  for  her  success  and  prosperity 
joined  with  unselfish  love.  The  graceful  wind-flowers 
tossed  their  delicate  blossoms  around  their  feet,  and  above 
them  an  eagle  wheeled  in  its  majestic  flight. 

Below  and  oposite  them  on  a  breezy  hill-side  stood^an 
elegant  modern  villa,  as  tasteful  in  its  architecture  as  the 
former  had  been  stiff  and  heavy.  A  fountain  played  upon 
the  lawn,  and  back  of  it  a  cascade  broke  into  silver  spray 
and  mist.  High  above  this  beautiful  earthly  home,  in  the 
clear,  pure  air  rose  a  palace-like  structure  in  shadowy  gold- 
en outline,  indicating  that  after  the  dwelling-place  of  time 
came  the  grander  and  more  perfect  mansion  above. 

Christine  looked  till  her  eyes  were  blinded  with  tears, 
and  then  dropped  her  veil.  In  the  features  of  the  lady  in 
each  case  she  had  not  failed  to  trace  a  faint  likeness,  suffi- 
cient to  make  it  clear  to  herself.  She  said  in  a  low  plain* 
tive  tone,  with  quivering  lips : 


388  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  Mr.  Fleet  painted  that  picture." 

"  Yes,"  said  Mrs.  Learned,  looking  at  her  with  no  little 
wondei  and  perplexity. 

By  a  great  effort  Christine  recovered  herself  and  said  : 

"  Yoa  know  how  deeply  fine  paintings  always  affect 
ne." 

Dennis  of  course  knew  nothing  of  Christine's  feelings. 
He  could  only  see  that  his  picture  had  produced  a  pro- 
found effect  on  her,  and  that  she  had  eyes  for  nothing  else. 
But  he  overheard  Mr.  Consoor  say  : 

"  It  is  indeed  a  remarkable  painting." 

"Do  you  know  its  author?"  asked  Mr.  Ludolph  with 
a  heavy  frown. 

*'  No,  I  do  not.     It  is  a  mystery  as  yet." 

"  Will  it  take  the  prize  do  you  think  ? " 

"  I  am  not  at  liberty  to  give  an  opinion  as  yet,"  replied 
Mr.  Consoor  with  a  smile.  "  There  is  another  picture  here, 
almost  if  not  quite  as  fine,  though  much  smaller  and  sim- 
pler," and  he  took  Mr.  Ludolph  off  to  show  him  that. 

Dennis  was  now  recognized  by  Mrs.  Learned  and  her 
husband,  who  came  forward  and  greeted  him  cordially,  and 
they  commenced  making  a  tour  of  the  gallery  together. 
Though  his  heart  hea.t/asf,  he  completely  ignored  Chris- 
tine's presence,  and  replied  coldly  to  Mr.  Ludolph's  slight 
bow. 

Christine,  on  being  aware  of  his  presence,  furtively 
devoured  him  with  her  eyes.  The  refining  influences  of  his 
life  were  evident  in  his  face  and  bearing,  and  she  realized 
her  ideal  of  what  a  man  ought  to  be.  Eagerly  she  watched 
til]  he  should  discover  her  painting  where  it  hung  opposite 
his  own,  and  at  last  she  was  amply  rewarded  for  all  her 
toil.     He  stopped  suddenly  and  stood  as  if  spell  bound. 

The  picture  was  very  simple,  and  few  accessories  entered 
into  it.     Upon  a  barren  rock  of  an  island  stood  a  woman 


SUGGESTIVE  PICTURES  AND  A  PRIZE.  389 

gazing  far  out  at  sea,  where  in  the  distance  a  ship  was  sail- 
ing away.  Though  every  part  had  been  worked  up  with 
exquisite  finish,  the  whole  force  and  power  of  the  painting 
lay  in  the  expression  of  the  woman's  face,  which  was  an  in- 
describable mingling  of  longing  and  despair.  Here  also 
Christine  had  traced  a  faint  resemblance  to  herself,  though 
the  woman  was  middle  aged  and  haggard,  with  famine  in 
her  cheeks. 

As  Dennis  looked  and  wondered,  the  thought  flashed 
into  his  mind,  "  Could  she  have  painted  that  ?  "  He  turned 
suddenly  toward  her  and  was  convinced  that  she  had  j  for 
there  she  was  looking  at  him  with  something  of  the  same 
expression,  or  at  least  he  fancied  so.  She  blushed  deeply 
and  turned  hastily  away.  He  was  greatly  agitated,  but  in 
view  of  the  eyes  that  were  upon  him  controlled  himself  and 
remained  outwardly  calm. 

Mr.  Ludolph  also  was  convinced  that  his  daughter  had 
painted  the  picture,  and  frowned  more  heavily  than  before. 
He  turned  a  dark  look  on  her,  and  found  her  regarding 
Dennis  in  a  manner  that  caused  him  to  grind  his  teeth  with 
rage.  But  he  could  do  nothing  but  sit  down  and  watch  the 
course  of  events. 

The  people  were  now  thronging  in.  The  gentlemen 
who  made  up  the  prize,  with  their  committee  of  award,  of 
which  Mr.  Consoor  was  chairman,  were  also  present.  Most 
critically  they  examined  each  picture  till  at  last  their  choice 
narrowed  down  to  the  two  paintings  above  described.  But 
it  soon  became  evident  that  their  choice  would  fall  upon  the 
larger  one,  and  Dennis  saw  that  he  was  to  be  the  victor. 
To  his  surprise  Christine  seemed  utterly  indifferent  as  to 
the  result  of  their  decision.  He  could  not  know  that  the 
prize  had  no  place  in  her  thoughts  when  she  painted  her 
picture.  She  had  found  her  reward  in  its  effect  on  him. 
A.t  one  o'clock  Mr.  Consoor  came  forward  and  said: 
I? 


39©  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  Ladies  and  gentlemen,  and  especially  do  T  address  that 
group  of  liberal  citizens  who  are  so  generously  seeking  to 
encourage  art  in  our  great  and  prosperous  city,  it  gives 
me  pleasure  to  inform  you  that  your  munificence  has 
I  rough t  forth  rich  fruit,  for  here  are  many  paintings  that 
would  do  credit  to  any  gallery.  We  hesitated  a  little  time 
between  two  very  superior  pictures,  but  at  last  we  have 
decided  that  the  larger  one  is  worthy  of  the  prize.  The 
smaller  picture  is  one  of  great  merit ;  its  treatment  is  un- 
usually fine,  though  the  subject  is  not  new. 

*'  The  two  emblematic  pictures  in  some  parts  show  crude 
and  hasty  work — indeed  some  minor  parts  are  quite  unfin- 
ished. The  artist  evidently  has  not  had  sufficient  time. 
But  the  leading  features  are  well  wrought  out,  and  there  is 
a  power  and  originality  about  the  entire  effort  that  so  im- 
presses us  that,  as  I  have  said,  we  render  our  decision  in 
its  favor.  That  all  may  know  that  our  verdict  is  fair,  we 
state  on  our  honor  that  we  do  not  know  the  authorship  of 
a  single  painting  present.  Dr.  Arten,  as  the  largest  con- 
tributor towards  the  prize,  you  are  appointed  to  bestow  it. 
On  the  back  of  the  picture  you  will  find  an  envelope  con- 
taining the  name  of  the  artist,  whom  we  all  shall  delight  to 
honor." 

Amid  breathless '  expectation,  Dr.  Arten  stepped  for- 
ward, took  down  the  envelope,  and  read  in  a  loud,  trumpet- 
Vike  voice, 

"  Dennis  Flew." 


CHAPTER  XLIII. 

FIRE  !      FIRE  ! 

"  Will  Dennis  Fleet  come  forward  ? "  cried  Dr.  Arten. 
Very  pale,  and  trembling  with  excitement,  Dennis  stepped 
out  before  them  all. 

"  Take  heart,  my  young  friend,  I  am  not  about  to  read 
your  death-warrant,"  said  the  Doctor  cheerily.  "  Permit 
me  to  present  you  with  this  check  for  two  thousand  dol- 
lars, and  express  to  you  what  is  of  more  value  to  the  true 
artist,  our  esteem  and  appreciation  of  your  artistic  merit. 
May  your  brush  ever  continue  to  be  employed  in  the 
presentation  of  such  noble,  elevating  thoughts ;  your 
laurel  crown  of  earth  will  change  to  the  more  unfading 
one  of  heaven." 

And  the  good  Doctor,  quite  overcome  by  this  unusual 
flight  of  eloquence,  blew  his  nose  vigorously  and  wiped 
from  his  spectacles  the  moisture  with  which  his  own  eyes 
had  bedewed  them. 

Dennis  responded  with  a  low  bow,  and  was  about  to 
retire ;  but  his  few  friends,  and  indeed  all  who  knew  him, 
pressed  forward  with  their  congratulations. 

Foremost  among  these  were  the  Professor  and  his  wife. 
Tears  of  delight  fairly  shone  in  Mrs.  Learned's  eyes  as 
she  shook  his  hand  again  and  again.  Many  others  also 
trooped  up  for  an  introduction,  till  he  was  quite  bewil- 
dered by  strange  names,  and  compliments  that  seemed 
stranger  still. 


392  BARRIERS  15UKNED  AWAY. 

Suddenly  a  low,  well-known  voice  at  his  side  sent  a 
thrill  to  his  heart  and  a  rush  of  crimson  to  his  face 

"  Will  Mr.  Fleet  deign  to  receive  my  congratulations 
also?" 

He  turned  and  met  the  deep  blue  eyes  of  Christine 
Ludolph  lifted  timidly  to  his.  But  at  once  the  association 
that  had  long  been  uppermost  in  regard  to  her — the  mem  ■ 
cry  of  her  supposed  treatment  of  his  mother — flashed 
across  him,  and  he  replied  with  cold  and  almost  stately 
courtesy : 

■ "  The  least  praise  or  notice  from  Miss  Ludolph  would 
be  a  most  unexpected  favor." 

She  thought  from  his  manner  that  he  might  as  well 
have  said  "  unwelcome  favor,"  and  with  a  sad  disappointed 
look  she  turned  away. 

Even  in  the  excitement  and  triumph  of  the  moment, 
Dennis  was  oppressed  by  the  thought  that  he  had  not 
spoken  as  wisely  as  he  might.  Almost  abruptly  he  broke 
away  and  escaped  to  the  solitude  of  his  own  room. 

He  did  not  think  about  his  success.  The  prize  lay 
forgotten  in  his  pocket-book.  He  sat  in  his  arm-chair  and 
stared  apparently  at  vacancy,  but  in  reality  at  the  picture 
that  he  was  sure  Christine  had  painted.  He  went  over 
and  over  again  with  the  nicest  scrutiny  all  her  actions  in 
the  galler}',  and  now  reproached  himself  bitterly  for  the 
repelling  answer  he  had  given  when  she  spoke  to  him. 
He  tried  to  regain  his  old  anger  and  hardness  in  view  of 
her  wrongs  to  him  and  his,  but  could  not.  The  tell-tale 
picture,  and  traces  of  sorrow  and  suffering  in  her  face  in 
accord  with  it,  had  disarmed  him.  He  said  to  himself^ 
and  half  believed,  that  he  was  letting  his  imagination  run 
away  with  his  reason,  but  could  not  help  it.  At  last  he 
seized  Iiis  hat  and  hastened  to  the  hotel  where  Mrs.  Lear- 
ned was  staying.  She  at  once  launched  out  into  a  strain 
^4* 


FIRE!   FIRE!  3g- 

eulogistic  and  descriptive  of  her  enjoyment  of  the  whole 
thing. 

"  I  never  was  so  proud  of  Chicago,"  she  exclaimed. 
*'  It  is  the  greatest  city  in  the  world.  Only  the  other  day 
her  streets  were  prairies.  I  believe  my  husband  expected 
to  find  buffalo  and  Indians  just  outside  the  town.  But 
see !  already  by  its  liberality  and  attention  to  Ait,  it 
begins  to  vie  with  some  of  our  oldest  cities.  But  what  is 
the  matter  ?     You  look  so  worried." 

"  Oh,  nothing,"  said  Dennis,  coming  out  of  his  troubled, 
abstracted  manner. 

With  her  quick  intuition,  Mrs.  Learned  at  once  divined 
his  thoughts,  and  said  soon  after,  when  her  husband's  back 
was  turned  : 

"  All  I  can  say  is,  that  she  was  deeply,  most  deeply 
affected  by  your  picture,  but  she  said  nothing  to  me,  more 
than  to  express  her  admiration.  My  friend,  you  had  better 
forget  her.  They  sail  for  Europe  very  soon ;  and  besides, 
she  is  not  worthy  of  you." 

"  I  only  wish  I  could  forget  her,  and  am  angry  with  niy- 
self  that  I  cannot,"  he  replied,  and  soon  after  said  "go«.d- 
night." 

Wandering  aimlessly  through  the  streets,  he  almost 
unconsciously  made  his  way  to  the  north  side,  where  tJiC 
Ludolph  mansion  was  situated.  Then  the  impulse  to  go  to 
it  came  over  him,  and  for  the  first  time  since  the  evening, 
long  before,  when,  stunned  and  wounded  by  his  bitter  dis- 
appointment he  had  gone  away  apparently  to  die,  he  again 
was  at  the  familiar  place.  The  gas  was  burning  in  Mr. 
Ludolph's  library.  He  went  around  on  the  side  street 
(for  the  house  was  on  a  corner),  and  a  light  shone 
from  what  he  knew  was  Christine's  studio.  She  undoubt- 
edly was  there.  Even  such  proximity  excited  him 
strangely,  and  in  his  morbid  state  he  felt  that  ht  rc^^ii 


394 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


almost  kiss  the  feeble  rays  that  shimmered  out  into  the 
darkened  street.  In  his  secret  soul  he  utterly  condemned 
his  folly,  but  promised  himself  that  he  would  be  weak  no 
longer  after  that  one  night.  The  excitements  of  the  day 
had  rather  thrown  him  off  his  balance. 

Suddenly  he  heard,  sweet  and  clear,  though  softened 
by  distance  and  intervening  obstacles,  the  same  weird,  pa- 
thetic ballad  that  had  so  moved  him  when  Christine  sang 
it  at  Le  Grand  Hotel,  the  evening  of  the  day  on  which 
he  had  pointed  out  the  fatal  defect  in  her  picture.  At 
short  intervals,  kindred  and  plaintive  songs  followed  each 
other. 

"  There  is  nothing  exultant  or  hopeful  about  those 
strains,"  he  said  to  himself.  "  For  some  reason  she  is  not 
happy.  Oh,  tliat  I  might  have  one  frank  conversation  with 
her,  and  find  out  the  whole  truth.  But  it  seems  that  I 
might  just  as  well  ask  for  a  near  look  at  yonder  star  that 
glimmers  so  distantly.  For  some  reason,  I  cannot  believe 
her  so  utterly  heartless  as  she  has  seemed;  and  then 
mother  has  prayed.   Can  it  all  end  as  a  miserable  dream  ?  " 

Late  at  night  the  music  ceased,  and  the  room  was  dark- 
ened. 

Little  dreamed  Christine  that  her  plaintive  minstrelsy 
had  fallen  on  so  sympathetic  an  ear,  and  that  the  man  who 
seemingly  had  repelled  her  slightest  acquaintance  had  shiv- 
ered long  hours  in  the  cold,  dark  street. 

So  the  Divine  friend  waits  and  watches,  even  till  the 
dews  of  morning  fall,  while  we,  in  ignorance  and  unbe- 
lief, pay  no  heed.  Stranger  far,  He  waits  and  watches  when 
we  know,  but  yet,  unrelenting,  ignore  His  presence. 

With  heavy  steps,  Dennis  wearily  plodded  homeward. 
He  was  oppressed  by  that  deep  despondency  which  follows 
great  fatigue  and  excitement. 

In  the  southwest  he   saw  a  brillianv   light.     He  heard 


FIRE!   FIRE! 


395 


the  alarm-bells,  and  knew  there  was  a  fire,  but  lo  have 
aroused  him  that  night  it  must  have  come  scorchingly 
close.  He  reached  his  dark  little  room,  threw  himself 
dressed  on  the  couch,  and  slept  till  nearly  noon  the  next 
day. 

When  he  awoke,  and  realized  how  the  best  hours  of  the 
Sabbath  had  passed,  he  started  up  much  vexed  with  him- 
self, and  after  a  brief  retrospect  said  : 

"  Such  excitements  as  those  of  yesterday  are  little  bet- 
ter than  a  debauch,  and  I  must  shun  them  hereafter.  God 
has  blessed  and  succeeded  me,  and  it  is  but  a  poor  return  I 
am  making.  However  my  unfortunate  attachment  ends, 
nothing  is  gained  by  moping  around  in  the  dead  of  night. 
Henceforth  let  there  be  an  end  to  such  folly." 

He  made  a  careful  toilet  and  sat  down  to  his  Sabbath- 
school  lesson. 

To  his  delight  he  again  met  Mrs.  Learned,  who  came  to 
visit  her  old  mission-class.  She  smiled  most  approvingly, 
and  quoted : 

" '  He  that  is  faithful  in  that  which  is  least  is  faithful 
also  in  much.' " 

He  went  home  with  her,  and  in  the  evening  they  all 
went  to  church  together. 

He  cried  unto  the  Lord  for  strength  and  help,  and 
almost  lost  consciousness  of  the  service  in  his  earnest 
prayer  for  true  manhood  and  courage  to  go  forward  to 
what  he  feared  would  be  a  sad  and  lonely  life.  And 
the  answer  came;  for  a  sense  of  power  and  readiness  to  do 
God's  will,  and  withal  a  strange  hopefulness,  inspired  him. 
Trusting  in  the  Divine  strength,  he  felt  that  he  could  meet 
his  future  now,  whatever  it  might  be. 

Again  the-alarm  bells  were  ringing,  and  there  was  a 
light  in  the  southwest. 

"  There  seems  to  be  a  fire  ovei  there  in  the  direction  of 


396  BARRIEl^S  BURNED  AWAY. 

my  poor  German  friend's  house.  You  remember  Mrs. 
Bruder.  I  will  go  and  call  on  them,  I  think.  At  any  rate 
I  should  call,  for  it  is  due  to  her  husband  that  I  won  the 
prize,"  and  they  parted  at  the  churchdoor. 

Christine  soon  left  the  gallery  with  a  veil  drawn  over 
her  face.  Her  gay  friends  tried  in  vain  to  rally  her,  and 
rather  wondered  at  her  manner,  but  said : 

"  She  is  so  full  of  moods  of  late,  you  can  never  know 
what  to  expect." 

Her  father,  with  a  few  indifferent  words,  left  her  for  his 
place  of  business.  His  hope  and  plan  still  was  to  prevent 
her  meeting  Dennis  and  keep  up  the  estrangement  that 
existed. 

Christine  went  home  and  spent  the  long  hours  in  bitter 
revery,  which  at  last  she  summed  up  by  saying  : 

*'  I  have  stamped  out  his  love  by  my  folly,  and  now  his 
words,  '  I  despise  you,'  express  the  whole  wretched 
truth."  Then  clenching  her  little  hands  she  added  with 
livid  lips  and  a  look  of  scorn,  "  If  I  can  never  help  him 
(and  therefore  no  one)  win  earthly  greatness,  I  will  never 
be  the  humble  recipient  of  it  from  another.  Since  his 
second  picture  cannot  be  true  of  my  experience,  neither 
shall  the  first." 

And  she  was  one  to  keep  such  a  resolve.  The  even- 
ing was  spent,  as  we  know,  in  singing  alone  in  her  studio, 
this  being  her  favorite,  indeed  her  only  way  of  giving 
expressipn  to  her  feelings.  Very  late  she  sough*  her  bed 
to  find  but  little  sleep. 

The  day  of  rest  brought  no  rest  to  her,  sugges  ed  no 
hope,  no  sacred  privilege  of  seeking  Divine  help  to  bear 
u})  under  life's  burdens.  To  her  it  was  a  relic  of  super- 
slitioi:i.  at  which  she  chafed  as  interfering  with  the  usual 
routine  of  affairs.  She  awoke  with  a  headache,  and  a  long 
mi-XM-alilf  day  she  found  it.     Sabbath  niy;ht  she  determined 


FIRE.  FIRE!  397 

to  have  sleep,  and  therefore  took  an  opiate  and  retired 
early. 

Mr.  Ludolph  sat  in  his  library  trying  to  construct  some 
plan  by  which  Christine  could  be  sent  to  Germany  at  once 

When  Dennis  reached  the  neighborhood  of  the  fire  he 
found  it  much  larger  than  he  supposed,  and  when  he 
entered  Harrison  Street,  near  where  Mrs.  Bruder  lived, 
discovered  that  only  prompt  action  could  save  the  family. 
The  streets  were  fast  becoming  choked  with  fugitives  and 
teams,  and  the  confusion  threatened  to  develop  into  panic 
and  wide-spread  danger.  The  fire  was  but  a  block  away 
when  he  rushed  up-stairs  to  the  floor  which  the  Bruders 
occupied.  From  the  way  that  blazing  brands  were  flying 
he  knew  that  there  was  not  a  moment  to  spare. 

He  found  Mrs.  Bruder  startled,  anxious,  but  in  no  way 
comprehending  the  situation. 

"  Quick ! "  cried  Dennis,  "  waken  and  dress  the  chil- 
dren— pack  up  what  you  can  lay  your  hands  on  and  carry 
— you  have  no  time  to  do  anything  more." 

"  Ah  !  mine  Gott !  vat  you  mean  ?  " 

"  Do  as  I  say — there's  no  time  to  explain.  Here 
Ernst,  help  me,"  and  Dennis  snatched  up  one  child  and 
commenced  dressing  it  before  it  could  fairly  wake. 
Ernst  took  up  another  and  followed  his  example.  Mrs. 
Bruder,  recovering  from  her  bewilderment,  hastily  gathered 
a  few  things  together,  saying  in  the  meantime  : 

"  Surely  you  don't  tink  our  home  burn  up  ?  " 

"  Yes,  my  poor  friend,  in  five  minutes  more  we  must  all 
be  out  of  this  building," 

"  Oh,  den  come  dis  minute  !  Let  me  save  de  childer,'* 
and  throwing  a  blanket  around  the  youngest  the  frightened 
woman  rushed  downstairs  followed  by  Ernst  and  his  little 
brother,  while  Dennis  hastened  with  the  last  child  and  th«» 
bundle 


398  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

Their  escape  was  none  too  prompt,  for  the  blazing 
embers  were  falling  to  that  degree  in  the  direct  line  of  the 
fire  as  to  render  it  very  unsafe.  But  though  their  progress 
was  necessarily  slow,  from  the  condition  of  the  streets,  the 
breadth  of  the  fire  was  not  great  at  this  point,  and  they  soon 
reached  a  position  to  the  west  and  windward  that  was  safe. 
Putting  the  family  in  charge  of  Ernst,  and  telling  them  ^o 
continue  westward,  Dennis  rushed  back,  feeling  that  many 
lives  might  depend  upon  stout  hands  and  brave  hearts 
that  night.  Moreover  he  was  in  that  state  of  mind  that 
made  him  court  rather  than  shun  danger. 

He  had  hardly  left  his  humble  friends  before  Mrs.  Bru- 
der  stopped,  put  her  hand  on  her  heart  and  cried : 

"  O  Ernst !  O  Gott  forgive  me  !  dat  I  should  forget 
him — your  fader's  picture.     I  must  go  back." 

"  O  moder,  no  !  you  are  more  to  us  than  the  picture." 
The  woman's  eyes  were  wild  and  excited,  and  she  cried 
vehemently  :  "  Dat  picture  saved  mine  Berthold  life — yes, 
more,  more,  him  brought  back  his  artist  soul.  Vithout 
him  ve  vould  all  be  vorse  dan  dead.  I  can  no  live  vith- 
out him.  Stay  here,"  and  with  the  speed  of  the  wind  the 
devoted  wife  ruslied  back  to  the  burning  street,  up  the 
stairs,  already  crackling  and  blazing,  to  where  the  lovely 
landscape  smiled  peacefully  in  the  dreadful  glare,  with  its 
last  rich  glow  of  beauty.  She  tore  it  from  its  fastenings, 
pressed  her  lips  fervently  against  it,  regained  the  street, 
but  with  dress  on  fire.  She  staggered  forward  a  few  steps 
in  the  hot  stifling  air  and  smoke,  and  then  fell  upon  her 
burden.  Spreading  her  arms  over  it,  to  protect  it  even  ip 
death,  the  mother's  heart  went  out  in  agony  toward  her 
children. 

"Ah  merciful  Gott !  take  care  of  dem,"  she  sighed,  and 
the  prayer  and  the  spirit  that  breathed  it  went  up  to  heaven 
together. 


CHAPTER  XLIV. 

BARON  LUDOLPH  LEARNS  THE  TRUTH. 

With  eyes  ablaze  with  excitement,  Dennis  plunged 
into  the  region  just  before  the  main  line  of  fire,  knowing 
that  there  the  danger  would  be  greatest.  None  realized 
the  rapidity  of  its  advance.  At  the  door  of  a  tenement- 
house  he  found  a  pale,  thin,  half-clad  woman  tugging 
at  a  sewing-machine. 

"Madam,"  cried  Dennis,  "you  have  no  time  to  waste 
over  that  burden  if  you  wish  to  escape." 

"  What  is  the  use  of  escaping  without  it  ? "  she  answered 
sullenly.     "  It  is  the  only  way  I  have  of  making  a  living." 

"  Give  it  to  me  then,  and  follow  as  fast  as  you  can." 
Shouldering  what  meant  to  the  poor  creature  shelter, 
clothing,  and  bread,  he  led  the  way  to  the  southeast,  out 
of  the  line  of  fire.  It  was  a  long,  hard  struggle,  but  they 
got  through  safely. 

"  How  can  I  ever  pay  you  ? "  cried  the  grateful  woman. 

"  By  your  prayers.     Good-bye,"  and  he  was  off"  again. 

"Well,"  she  muttered,  "I  never  prayed  much  before, 
but  I  am  going  to  begin  now." 

Dennis  determined  to  make  his  way  to  the  west,  and 
windward  of  the  fire,  as  he  could  then  judge  better  of  ihe 
chances  of  its  spreading.  He  thought  it  safer  to  go 
around  and  back  of  the  flames,  as  they  now  seemed  much 
wider,  and  nearer  the  south  branch  of  the  Chicago  river. 

He  found  that  he  could  cross  the  burnt  district  a  little 


400 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


to  the  southwest,  for  the  small  wooden  houses  were  swept 
so  utterly  away  that  there  were  no  heated  blazing  ruins  to 
contend  with.  He  also  saw  that  he  could  do  better  by 
making  quite  a  wide  circuit,  as  he  thus  avoided  streets 
choked  by  fugitives.  Reaching  a  point  near  the  river  on 
the  west  side  of  the  fire,  he  climbed  a  high  pile  of  lumber, 
and  then  discovered  to  his  horror  that  the  fire  had  caught 
in  several  places  on  the  south  side,  and  that  the  nearest 
bridges  were  burning. 

To  those  not  familiar  with  the  topography  of  the  city, 
it  should  be  stated  that  it  is  separated  by  the  Chicago 
river,  a  slow,  narrow  stream,  into  three  main  divisions, 
known  as  the  south,  north,  and  west  sides. 

By  a  triumph  of  engineering,  the  former  mouth  of  this 
river  at  the  lake  is  now  its  source,  the  main  stream  being 
turned  back  upon  itself,  and  dividing  into  two  branches 
at  a  point  little  o''er  half  a  mile  from  the  lake,  one  flowing 
to  the  southwest  into  the  Illinois,  and  the  other  from  the 
northwest. 

The  south  di^'ision  includes  all  the  territory  between 
the  lake  east  of  ti.e  south  branch  and  south  of  the  main 
river.  The  north  division  includes  the  area  between  the 
lake  east  of  the  north  branch  and  north  of  the  river  j 
while  the  west  division  embraces  all  that  part  of  the  city 
west  of  the  two  branches.  The  fire  originated  in  De 
Koven  Street,  the  southeastern  part  of  the  west  side,  and 
it  was  carried  steadily  to  the  north  and  east,  by  an  increas- 
ing gale.  The  south  side,  with  all  its  magnificent  build- 
ings, was  soon  directly  in  the  line  of  the  fire. 

When  Dennis  saw  that  the  flames  had  crossed  the 
south  branch,  and  were  burning  furiously  beyond,  he  knew 
that  the  best  part  of  the  city  was  threatened  with  destruc- . 
tion.  He  hastened  to  the  Washington  Street  tunnel, 
where  he  found  a  '-ast  throng,  carrying  all  sorts  of  burdens, 


BARON  LUDOLPH  I.EARNS  THE  TRUTH.        401 

rushing  either  way.  He  plunged  in  with  the  rest,  and 
soon  found  himself  hustled  hither  and  thither  by  a  surging 
mass  of  humanity.  A  little  piping  voice  that  seemed 
under  his  feet  cried : 

"  Gh,  mamma !  mamma !  Where  are  you  ?  I'm  gettin* 
lost." 

"  Here  I  am,  my  child,"  answered  a  voice  some  steps 
in  advance,  and  Dennis  saw  a  lady  carrying  another  child ; 
but  the  rushing  tide  would  not  let  her  wait,  each  one,  in 
the  place  where  they  were  wedged,  being  carried  right 
along.  Stooping  down,  he  put  the  little  girl  on  his  shoul- 
der where  she  could  see  her  mother,  and  so  they  pressed 
on.  Suddenly,  in  the  very  midst  of  the  tunnel,  by  reason 
of  the  destruction  of  the  works,  the  gas  all  at  once  ceased, 
and  utter  darkness  filled  the  place. 

There  was  a  loud  cry  of  consternation,  and  then  a 
momentary  and  dreadful  silence,  which  would  have  been 
the  preface  of  a  fatal  panic,  had  not  Dennis  cried  out  in  a 
clarion  voice : 

"  All  keep  to. the  right !  " 

This  cry  was  taken  up  and  repeated  on  every  hand,  and 
side  by  side,  to  right  and  left,  the  two  living  streams  of 
humanity,  with  steady  tramp  1  tramp  !  rushed  past  each 
other. 

When  they  emerged  into  the  glare  of  the  south  side 
Dennis  gave  the  child  to  its  mother  and  said :  "  Madam, 
your  only  chance  is  to  escape  in  that  direction,"  pointing 
northwest. 

He  then  tried  to  make  his  way  to  the  hotel  where  Pro- 
fessor and  Mrs.  Learned  were  staying,  but  it  was  in  the 
midst  of  an  unapproachable  sea  of  fire.  If  they  had  not 
escaped  some  little  time  before,  they  had  already  perished. 
He  then  tried  to  make  his  way  to  the  windward,  towards 
his  own  room.     His  two  thousand  dollars  and  all  he  pos- 


^  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

sessed  was  there,  and  the  instinct  of  self-preservation 
caused  him  to  think  it  was  time  to  look  after  ms  own. 
But  progress  was  now  very  difficult.  The  streets  were 
choked  by  drays,  carriages,  furniture,  trunks,  and  every  de- 
gree and  condition  of  humanity.  In  addition  to  these  im* 
pediments  his  steps  were  often  stayed  by  thrilling  scenesi 
and  the  need  of  a  helping  hand.  In  order  to  make  his  way 
faster  he  took  a  street  nearer  the  fire  from  which  the  people 
had  mostly  been  driven.  As  he  was  hurrying  along  with 
his  hat  drawn  over  his  eyes  to  avoid  the  sparks  that  were 
driven  about  like  fiery  hail,  he  suddenly  heard  a  piercing 
shriek.  Looking  up  he  saw  the  figure  of  a  woman  at  the 
third  story  window  of  a  fine  mansion  that  was  already  burn- 
ing, though  not  so  rapidly  as  those  in  the  direct  line  of  the 
fire.     He  with  a  number  of  others  stopped  at  the  sound. 

"Who  will  volunteer  with  me  to  save  that  woman?" 
::ried  he. 

"  Wal,  stranger,  you  can  reckon  on  this  old  stager  for 
one,"  answered  a  familiar  voice. 

Dennis  turned  and  recognized  his  old  friend,  the  Good 
Samaritan. 

"  Why  Cronk,"  he  cried,  "  don't  you  know  me  ?  Don't 
you  remember  the  young  man  you  saved  from  starving  by 
suggesting  the  snow-shovel  business  ? " 

"  Hollo !  my  young  colt.  How  are  you  ? — give  us  your 
fore  foot.  But  come,  don't  let's  stop  to  talk  about  snow  in 
this  hell  of  a  place  with  that  young  filly  whinnying  up 
there." 

"Right!"  cried  Dennis.  "Let  us  find  a  ladder  and 
rope  ;  quick — " 

At  a  paint-shop  around  the  corner  a  ladder  was  found 
that  reached  to  the  second  story,  and  some  one  procured  a 
rope. 

'•  A  thousand  dollars,"  cried  another  familiar  voice,  "  tc 
the  man  who  saves  that  woman  !  " 


BARON  LUDOLPH  LEARNS  THE  TRUTH.        403 

Looking  round,  Dennis  saw  standing  on  a  box  near  the 
burly  form  of  Mr.  Brown,  the  brewer,  his  features  .'  istorted 
by  agony  and  fear,  then  glancing  up  he  discovered  in  the 
red  glare  upon  her  face  that  the  woman  was  no  other  than 
liis  daughter.  She  had  come  to  spend  the  night  with  a 
friend,  and  being  a  sound  sleeper,  had  not  escaped  with  the 
rest  of  the  family. 

"  Who  wants  yer  thousand  dollars  ? "  replied  Bill  Cronk's 
gruff  voice.  "  Dy'e  spose  we'd  hang  out  here  over  the  bot- 
tomless pit  for  any  such  trifle  as  that  ?  We  want  to  save 
the  gal." 

Before  Cronk  was  through  his  characteristic  speech 
Dennis  was  half  way  up  the  ladder.  He  entered  the  second 
story  only  to  be  driven  back  by  fire  and  smoke. 

"  A  pole  of  some  kind !  "  he  cried. 

The  thills  of  a  broken-down  buggy  supplied  this,  but 
the  flames  had  already  reached  Miss  Brown.  Being  a  girl 
of  a  good  deal  of  nerve  and  physical  courage  however,  she 
tore  off"  her  outer  clothing  with  her  own  hands.  Dennis 
now  handed  her  the  rope  on  the  end  of  the  buggj'-thill  and 
told  her  to  fasten  it  to  something  in  the  room  that  would 
support  her  weight,  and  lower  herself  to  the  second  stor}\ 
She  fastened  it,  but  did  not  seem  to  know  how  to  lower 
herself  Dennis  tried  the  rope,  found  it  would  sustain  his 
weight,  then  bringing  into  use  an  art  learned  in  his  college 
g}'mnasium,  he  over-handed  rapidly  till  he  stood  at  Miss 
Brown's  side.  Drawing  up  the  rope  he  fastened  her  to  it 
and  lowered  her  to  the  ladder,  where  Bill  Cronk  caught 
her,  and  in  a  moment  more  she  was  in  her  father's  arms, 
who  at  once  shielded  her  from  exposure  with  his  over- 
coat. Dennis  followed  the  rope  down,  and  had  hardly  got 
away  before  the  building  fell  in. 

"  Is  not  this  Mr.  Fleet  ? "  asked  Miss  Brown. 

"Yes." 


404 


BARRIERS  BURNED   AWAV, 


"  How  can  we  ever  repay  you  ? " 

"  By  learning  to  respect  honest  men,  even  though  they 
are  not  rich,  Miss  Brown." 

"  Did  you  kncjv  who  it  was  when  you  saved  me  ?  "• 

"Yes." 

"  Mr.  Fleet,  I  sincerely  ask  youi  pardon." 

But  before  Dennis  could  leply  they  were  compelled  to 
fly  for  their  lives. 

Mr.  Brown  shouted  as  he  ran — "  Call  at  the  house  or 
place  of  business  of  Thomas  Brown,  and  the  money  will  be 
ready." 

But  Thomas  Brown  would  have  found  it  hard  work 
to  rake  a  thousand  dollars  out  of  the  ashes  of  either  place 
the  following  day.  The  riches  in  which  he  trusted  had 
taken  wings. 

Cronk  and  Dennis  kept  together  for  a  short  distance, 
and  the  latter  saw  that  his  friend  had  been  drinking. 
Their  steps  led  chem  near  a  large  liquor-store  which  a 
party  qjf  men  and  boys  were  sacking.  One  of  these,  half 
intoxicated,  handed  Bill  a  bottle  of  whiskey,  but  as  the 
drover  was  lifting  it  to  his  lips,  Dennis  struck  it  to  the 
ground.    Cronk  was  in  a  rage  instantly. 

"  What  the  —  did  you  do  that  for  ? "  he  growled. 

"  I  would  do  that  and  more  too,  to  save  your  life.  If 
you  get  drunk  to-night  you  are  a  lost  man,"  answered 
Dennis  earnestly. 

"  Whose  agoin'  ter  get  drunk,  I'd  like  ter  know  ?  You 
feel  yer  oats  too  much  to-night.  No  man  or  horse  can 
kick  over  the  traces  with  me,"  and  he  went  off  in  the 
unreasoning  ange*"  of  a  half-drunken  man.  But  he  carried 
all  his  generous  impulses  with  him,  for  a  few  minutes  after, 
seeing  a  man  lying  in  a  most  dangerous  position,  he  ran 
up  and  shook  hhn   crying  : 

"  I  say,  stranger,  get  up,  or  yer  ribs  will  soon  be  roasted.' 


BARON  LUDOLPH  LEARNS  THE  TRUTH.    405 

"  Leon  me  'lone,"  was  the  maudl'n  answer.  "  I've  had 
drink  'nufF.     'Tain't  momin'  yet." 

"  Hi  there  !  "  cried  a  warning  voice,  and  Cronk  started 
back  just  in  time  to  escape  a  blazing  wall  that  fell  across  the 
Btreet.  The  stupefied  man  he  sought  to  arouse  was  hope- 
lessly buried.  Cronk,  having  got  out  of  danger,  stood  and 
scratched  his  head,  his  favorite  way  of  assisting  reflection. 

"  That's  just  what  that  young  critter  Fleet  meant.  What 
a  cussed  ole  mule  I  was  to  kick  up  so.  Ten  chances  to 
one  but  it  will  happen  to  me  afore  mo'-nin'.  Look  here. 
Bill  Cronk,  you  just  pint  out  of  this  fiery  furnace.  You 
know  yer  failin',  and  there's  too  long  and  black  a  score 
agin  you  in  tother  world  for  you  to  go  to-night,"  and  Bill 
made  a  bee  line  for  the  west  side. 

Struggling  off  to  windward  through  the  choked  streets 
for  a  little  distance,  Dennis  ascended  the  side  stairs  of  a 
tall  building,  in  order  to  get  more  accurately  the  bearings 
of  the  fire.  He  now  for  the  first  time  realized  its  magni- 
tude, and  was  appalled.  It  appeared  as  if  the  whole  south 
side  must  go.  At  certain  points  the  very  heav^ens  seemed 
on  fire.  The  sparks  filled  the  air  like  flakes  of  fiery  snow, 
and  great  blazing  fragments  of  roofs,  and  boards  from  lum- 
ber yards,  sailed  over  his  head,  with  the  ill-omened  glare 
of  meteors.  The  rush  and  roar  of  the  wind  and  flames  was 
like  the  thunder  of  Niagara,  and  to  this  awfiil  monotone 
accompaniment  was  added  a  Babel  of  soimds — shrieks,  and 
shouts  of  human  voices,  the  sharp  crash  of  falling  build- 
ings, and  ever  and  anon  heavy  detonations,  as  the  fire 
reached  explosive  material.  As  he  looked  down  into  the 
white  upturned  faces  in  the  thronged  streets,  it  seemed  to 
him  as  if  the  people  might  be  gathering  for  the  last  great 
day.  Above  all  the  uproar,  the  court-house  bell  could  be 
heard,  with  its  heav)',  solemn  clangor,  no  longer  ringing 
alarm,  but  the  city's  knell ! 
18 


4o6  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

But  he  saw  that  if  he  reached  his  own  little  room  in 
time  to  save  anything,  he  must  hasten.  His  course  lay 
near  the  Art  Building,  the  place  so  thronged  with  associ- 
ations  to  him.  An  irresistible  impulse  drew  him  to  it.  U 
was  evident  that  it  must  soon  go,  for  an  immense  building 
to  the  southwest,  on  the  same  block,  was  burning,  and 
the  walls  were  already  swaying. 

Suddenly,  a  man  rushed  past  him,  and  Mr.  Ludolph 
put  his  pass-key  in  the  'side  door. 

"  Mr.  Ludolph,  it  is  not  safe  to  enter,"  said  Dennis. 

"  What  are  you  doing  here  with  your  ill-omened  face  ? " 
retorted  his  old  employer,  turning  toward  him  a  counte- 
nance terrible  in  its  expression.  As  we  have  seen,  any- 
thing that  threatened  Mr.  Ludolph's  interests,  even  that 
which  most  men  bow  before,  as  sickness  and  disaster,  only 
awakened  his  anger  ;  and  his  face  was  black  with  passion 
and  distorted  with  rage. 

The  door  yielded  and  he  passed  in. 

"  Come  back,  quick,  Mr.  Ludolph,  or  you  are  lost ! " 
cried  Dennis  at  the  door. 

"  I  will  get  certain  papers,  though  the  heavens  fall '  " 
yelled  back  the  infuriated  man,  with  an  oath. 

Dennis  heard  an  awful  rushing  sound  in  the  air.  Re 
drew  his  hat  over  his  face  as  he  ran,  crouching.  Hot  bricks 
rained  around  him,  but  fortunately  he  escaped. 

When  he  turned  to  look,  the  Art  Building  was  a  crushed 
and  blazing  ruin.  Sweet  girlish  faces  that  had  smiled  upon 
him  from  the  walls,  beautiful  classical  faces  that  had  in- 
spired his  artist  soul,  stern  Roman  faces,  that  had  made 
the  past  seem  real,  the  human  faces  of  gods  and  goddesses 
that  made  mythology  seem  not  wholly  a  myth,  and' the 
white  marble  faces  of  the  statuary,  that  ever  reminded  him 
of  Christine,  he  knew  were  now  all  blackened  and  defaced 
forever.      Bui    n  )t    of  t!ij;e    he    thouolu,   as  he  shudd*^- 


"  CHRISTINE,   AWAKE  !  "  407 

ingly  covered  his  eyes  with  his  hands  to  shut  out  the  vision  ; 
but  of  that  terrible  face  that  in  the  darkness  had  yeDed 
defiance  to  heaven. 


CHAPTER  XLV. 

"  CHRISTINE,    AWAKE  !    FOR   YOUR   LIFE  !  " 

Dennis  Was  too  much  stunned  and  bewildered  to  do 
more  than  instinctively  work  his  way  to  the  windward  as 
the  only  point  of  safety,  but  the  fire  was- now  becoming  so 
broad  in  its  sweep  that  to  do  this  was  difficult.  The  awftil 
event  he  had  witnessed  seemed  to  partially  paralyze  him  ; 
for  he  knew  that  the  oath,  hot  as  the  scorching  flames,  was 
scarcely  uttered  before  Mr.  Ludolph's  lips  were  closed  for- 
ever. He  and  his  ambitious  dream  perished  in  a  moment, 
and  he  was  summoned  to  the  other  world  to  learn  what  h's 
proud  reason  scoffed  at  in  this. 

For  a  block  or  more  Dennis  was  passively  borne  along 
by  the  rushing  mob.  Suddenly  a  loud  voice  seemed  to 
shout  almost  in  his  ear: 

"  The  north  side  is  burning ! "  and  he  started  as  from 
a  dream.  The  thought  of  Christine  flashed  upon  him,  per- 
ishing perhaps  in  ^the  flames.  He  remembered  that  now 
she  had  no  protector,  and  that  he  for  the  moment  had  for- 
gotten her ;  though  in  truth  he  never  imagined  that  the 
north  side  would  bum. 

In  an  agony  of  fear  and  anxiety  he  put  forth  every  ef- 
fort of  which  he  was  capable,  and  tore  through  the  crowd  as 
if  mad  There  was  no  way  of  getting  across  the  river  now 
save  by  the  La  Salle  Street  tunnel.     Into  this  dark  passage 


4o8  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

he  plunged  with  multitudes  of  others.  It  was  indeed  as 
near  Pandemonium  as  any  earthly  condition  could  be. 
Driven  forward  by  the  swiftly  pursuing  flames,  hemmed  in 
on  every  side,  a  shrieking,  frenzied,  terror-stricken  throng 
rushed  into  the  black  cavern.  Every  moral  difference  was 
represented  there.  Those  who  led  abandoned  lives  were 
plainly  recognizable,  their  guilty  consciences  finding  expres- 
sion in  their  livid  faces.  These  jostled  the  refined  and 
delicate  lady,  who,  in  the  awfiil  democracy  of  the  hour, 
brushed  against  thief  and  harlot.  Little  children  wailed  for 
their  lost  parents,  and  many  were  trampled  under  foot. 
Parents  cried  for  their  children,  women  shrieked  for  their 
husbands,  some  praying,  many  cursing  with  oaths  as  hot  as 
the  flames  that  crackled  near.  ■  Multitudes  were  in  no  other 
costumes  save  those  in  which  they  sprang  from  their  beds. 
Altogether  it  was  a  strange  incongrnuous  writhing  mass  of 
humanity  such  as  the  world  never  looked  upon,  pouring 
into  what  might  seem,  in  its  horrors,  the  mouth  of  hell. 

As  Dennis  entered  the  utter  darkness  a  confused  roar 
smote  his  ear  that  might  have  appalled  the  stoutest  heart, 
but  he  was  now  oblivious  to  everything  save  Christine's 
danger.  With  set  teeth  he  put  his  shoulder  against  the  liv- 
ing mass  and  pushed  with  the  strongest  till  he  emerged  into 
the  glare  of  the  north  side.  Here  escaping  from  the  throng 
somewhat,  he  made  his  way  rapidly  to  the  Ludolph  man- 
sion, which  to  his  joy  he  found  was  still  considerably  to  the 
windward  of  the  fire.  But  from  the  southwest  he  saw  that 
another  line  of  flame  was  bearing  down  upon  it. 

The  front  door  was  locked,  and  the  house  utterly  dark. 
He  rung  the  bell  furiously,  but  there  was  no  response.  He 
walked  around  under  the  window  and  shouted,  but  the 
place  remained  as  dark  and  silent  as  a  tomb.  He  pounded 
on  the  door,  but  its  massive  thickness  scarcely  admitted  of 
a  reverberation. 


"  CHRISTINE,   AWAKE  !  "  409 

"  They  must  have  escaped,"  he  said ;  "  but,  merciful 
heaven,  there  must  be  no  uncertainty  in  this  case.  What 
shall  I  do  ? " 

The  windows  of  the  lower  story  were  all  strongly 
guarded  and  hopeless,  but  one  opening  on  the  balcony  of 
Christine's  studio  seemed  practicable  if  it  could  be  reached. 
A  half-grown  elm  swayed  its  graceful  branches  over  the 
balcony,  and  Dennis  knew  the  tough  and  fibrous  nature  of 
this  tree.  In  the  New  England  woods  of  his  early  home 
he  had  learned  to  climb  for  nuts  like  a  squirrel,  and  so 
with  no  great  difficulty  he  n*  anted  up  the  trunk  and  drop- 
ped from  an  overhanging  b»anch  to  the  vantage-point  he 
sought.  The  window  was  uown  from  the  top,  but  the 
lower  sash  was  fastened.  He  could  see  the  catch  by  the 
light  of  the  fire.  He  broke  the  pane  of  glass  nearest  it, 
hoping  that  the  crash  might  awaken  Christine,  if  she  were 
still  there.  But  after  the  clatter  died  away  there  was  no 
sound.     He  then  noisily  raised  the  sash  and  stepped  in. 

What  a  rush  of  memories  came  over  him  as  he  looked 
around  the  familiar  place.  There  was  the  spot  where  he 
stood  and  asked  for  the  love  that  he  had  valued  more 
than  life.  There  stood  the  easel  where,  tiirough  Christine's 
gifted  touch,  his  painted  face  had  pleaded  with  scarcely  I 
less  eloquence,  till  he  blotted  it  out  with  his  own  hand.  In 
memory  of  it  all  his  heart  again  failed  him,  and  he  sighed ' 

"  She  will  never  love  me." 

But  there  was  no  time  for  sentiment.  He  called  loudly : 
*'  Miss  Ludolph,  awake  !  awake  !  for  your  life  !  " 

There  was  no  answer.  •  "  She  must  be  gone,"  he  said. 
The  front  room,  facing  toward  the  west,  he  knew  to  be  hei 
sleeping  apartment.  Going  through  the  ordinary  passage 
of  city  houses,  he  knocked  loudly,  and  called  again  ;  but 
in  the  silence  that  followed  he  heard  his  own  watch  tick, 
and  his  heart  beat.     He  pushed  the  door  open  with   the 


4XO 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY, 


feeling  of  one  who  was  profaning  a  shrine,  and  looked 
timidly  in.  Even  in  that  thrilling  hour  of  peril  and  anxiety, 
his  eye  was  enraptured  by  the  beauty  of  the  room.  Not 
only  was  it  furnished  with  the  utmost  luxuriance,  but  every- 
thing spoke  of  a  quaint  and  cultured  taste,  from  the 
curious  marble  clock  and  bronze  on  the  mantel,  even  to 
the  pattern  of  the  Turkey  carpet  on  which  the  glare  of  the 
fire,  as  it  glinted  through  the  shutters,  played  faintly.  One 
of  the  most  marked  features,  however,  was  an  exquisite  life- 
size  statue  of  Diana  at  the  foot  of  the  bed,  grasping  her  bow 
with  one  hand,  and  in  the  act  of  seizing  an  arrow  with  the 
other,  as  if  aroused  to  self-defence.  When  Dennis  first 
saw  it,  he  was  so  startled  by  its  life-like  attitude  that  he 
stepped  back  into  the  passage.  But,  with  all  the  beauty 
of  the  room,  it  was  utterly  pagan ;  not  a  single  thing  sug- 
gested Christian  faith  or  a  knowledge  of  the  true  God. 
With  the  exception  of  its  rnodern  air,  it  might  just  as  well 
have  been  the  resting-place  of  a  Greek  or  Roman  maiden 
of  rank. 

Reassured,  he  timidly  advanced  again,  and  then  for 
the  first  time,  between  two  marble  statuettes  holding  back 
the  curtains  of  the  bed,  saw  Christine,  but  looking  more 
white  and  deathlike  than  the  marble  itself 

She  lay  with  her  face  toward  him.  Her  hair  of  gold, 
unconfined,  streamed  over  the  pillow;  one  fair  round  arm, 
from  which  her  night  robe  had  slipped  back,  was  clasped 
around  her  head,  and  a  flickering  ray  of  light  finding  access 
at  the  window  played  upon  her  face  and  neck  with  the 
strangest  and  most  weird  effect.- 

So  deep  was  her  slumber  that  she  seemed  dead,  and 
Dennis,  in  his  overwrought  state,  thought  that  she  was. 
for  a  moment  his  heart  stood  still,  and  his  tongue  was 
paralyzed.  A  distant  explosion  aroused  him.  Approach- 
ing softly  he  said  in  an  awed  whisper  (he  seemed  power 
less  to  speak  louder) : 


"CHRISTINE,   awake!"  411 

"Miss  Ludolph  !— Christine  !  " 

But  the  light  of  the  coming  fire  played  and  flickered 
over  the  still,  white  face,  that  never  before  seemed  so 
strangely  beautiful. 

"  Miss  Ludolph  1 — Oh,  Christine,  awake  1 "  cried  Dennis 
louder 

To  his  wonder  and  unbounded  perplexity,  he  saw  tfce 
hitherto  motionless  lips  wreathe  themselves  into  a  lovely 
smile,  but  otherwise  there  was  no  response,  and  the 
ghostly  light  played  and  flickered  on,  dancing  on  temple, 
brow,  and  snowy  throat,  and  clasping  the  white  arm  in 
wavy  circlets  of  gold.  It  was  all  so  weird  and  strange, 
that  he  was  growing  superstitious,  and  losing  faith  in  his 
own  senses.  He  could  not  know  that  she  was  under  the 
influence  of  an  opiate,  and  that  his  voice  of  all  others 
could,  like  a  faint  echo,  find  access  to  her  mind  so  deeply 
sunk  in  lethargy. 

But  a  louder  and  nearer  explosion,  like  a  warning 
voice,  made  him  wholly  desperate ;  and  he  roughly  seized 
her  hand,  determining  to  dispel  the  illusion,  and  learn 
the  truth  at  once, 

Christine's  blue  eyes  opened  wide  with  a  bewildered 
stare ;  a  look  of  the  wildest  terror  came  into  them,  and 
she  started  up  and  shrieked,  "  Father !     Father ! " 

Then  turning  toward  the  as  yet  unknown  invader,  she 
cried  piteously : 

"  Oh,  spare  my  life  !  Take  everything ;  I  will  give  you 
anything  you  ask,  only  spare  my  life." 

She  evidently  thought  herself  addressing  a  ruthless 
iobber. 

Dennis  retreated  toward  the  door  the  moment  she 
awakened ;  and  this  somewhat  reassured  her. 

In  the  firm  quiet  tone  that  always  calms  excitement  he 
replied : 


412  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

'  I  only  ask  you  to  give  me  your  confidence,  Miss 
Ludolph,  and  to  joir  with  me,  Dennis  Fleet,  in  my  effort 
to  save  your  life." 

"Dennis  Fleet!  Dennis  Fleet!  save  my  life!  O  ye 
gods  what  does  it  all  mean  ?  "  and  she  passed  her  hand  in 
bewilderment  across  her  brow,  as  if  to  brush  away  the 
wild  fancies  of  a  dream. 

"  Miss  Ludolph,  as  you  love  your  life,  arouse  yourself 
and  escape !     The  city  is  burning ! " 

"  I  don't  believe  it !  "  she  cried  in  an  agony  of  terror 
and  anger.  "  Leave  the  room !  How  dare  you !  You  are 
not  Dennis  Fleet ;  he  is  a  white  man,  and  you  are  black ! 
You  are  an  impostor  1  Leave  quick,  or  •  my  father  will 
come  and  take  your  life !     Father !     Father ! " 

Dennis  without  a  word  stepped  to  the  window,  tore 
iside  the  curtain,  threw  open  the  shutters,  and  the  fire 
filled  the  room  with  the  glare  of  noonday.  At  that  mo- 
ment an  explosion  occurred  which  shook  the  very  earth. 
Everything  rattled,  and  a  beautiful  porcelain  vase  fell 
crashing  to  the  floor. 

Christine  shrieked  and  covered  her  face  with  her 
hands. 

Dennis  approached  the  bedside,  and  said  in  a  gentle, 
firm  tone  that  she  knew  to  be  his  : 

"  Miss  Ludolph,  I  am  Mr.  Fleet.  My  face  is  blackened 
through  smoke  and  dust,  as  is  every  one's  out  in  the 
streets  to-night.  You  know  something  of  me,  and  I  think 
you  know  nothing  dishonorable.  Can  you  not  trust  me  "i 
Indeed  you  must ;  your  life  depends  upon  it !  " 

"Oh,  pardon  me,  Mr.  Fleet!"  she  cried  eagerly.  "I 
am  not  worthy  of  this,  but  now  that  I  know  you,  I  do 
trus\  you  from  the  depths  of  my  soul ! " 

"  Prove  it  then  by  doing  just  as  I  bid  you,"  he  replied 
In  a  voice  so  firm  and  prompt  that  it  seemed  almost  stem. 


"CHRISTINE,   awake!"  413 

Retreating  to  the  door,  he  continued :  "  I  give  you  just 
five  minutes  in  which  to  make  your  toilet  and  gather  a 
light  bundle  of  your  choicest  valuables.  Dress  in  woollen 
throughout,  and  dress  warmly.  I  will  see  that  the  servants 
are  aroused.  Your  father  is  on  the  south  side,  and  cannot 
reach  you.  You  must  trust  in  God,  and  what  I  can  do 
for  you." 

"  I  must  trust  to  you  alone^^  she  said.  "  Please  send 
my  maid  to  me." 

Mr.  Ludolph  had  sipped  his  wine  during  the  evening, 
and  his  servants  had  sipped,  in  no  dainty  way,  something 
stronger,  and  therefore  had  not  awakened  readily.  But  the 
uproar  in  the  streets  had  aroused  them,  and  Dennis  found 
them  scuttling  down  the  upper  stairs  in  a  half-clad  state, 
each  bearing  a  large  bundle,  which  had  been  made  up 
without  regard  to  meum  and  tuum. 

"  Och,  murther  !  is  the  wourld  burning  up  ? "  cried  the 
cook. 

"Be  still,  ye  howlin'  fool,"  said  the  cool  and  travelled 
maid.     "  It's  only  von  big  fire." 

"  Go  to  your  mistress  and  help  her,  quick ! "  cried 
Dennis. 

"  Go  to  my  mistress  !  I  go  to  de  street  and  save  my 
life." 

"  Oh,  Janette !  "  cried  Christine.   "  Come  and  help  me  1" 

"  I  am  meeserable  dat  I  cannot.  I  must  bid  Mademoi- 
selle quick  adieu,"  said  the  heartless  creature,  still  keeping 
up  the  thin  veneer  of  French  politeness. 

Dennis  looked  through  the  upper  rooms  and  was  satis- 
fied they  were  empty.  Suddenly  a  piercing  shriek  from 
Christine  sent  him  flying  to  her  room.  As  he  ran  he 
heard  her  cry : 

"  Oh,  Mr.  Fleet !  mercy !  mercy  1 " 

To  go  back  a  little  (for  on  that  awful  night  events 
18* 


414  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

marched  as  rapidly  as  the  flames,  and  the  experience  of 
years  was  crowded  into  hours,  and  that  of  hours  into  mo- 
ments), Christine  had  sought  as  best  she  could  to  obey 
Dennis  directions,  but  she  was  sadly  helpless,  having  been 
trained  to  a  foolish  dependence  on  her  maid.  She  :  ac 
accomplished  but  little  when  she  heard  a  heavy  step  in  the 
room.  Looking  up,  she  saw  a  strange  man  regarding  hei 
with  an  evil  eye,  and  yet  there  was  something  most  disa- 
geeably  familiar  about  him. 

"  What  do  you  want  ? "  she  faltered. 

"  You,  for  one  thing,  and  all  you  have  got,  for  another, 
was  the  brutal  reply. 

"  Leave  this  room ! "  she  cried  in  a  voice  she  vainly 
tried  to  render  firm. 

"  No  yer  don't,  Miss  Ludolph.  Yer  don't  git  off  sc 
easy  this  time.  Don't  yer  know  me  ? — yer  once  said  yer 
loved  me !  Yer  see  I'm  faithful  if  you  hain't,"  he  added 
with  a  Satanic  grin,  and  to  her  horror  she  recognized 
Deacon  Gudgeon's  son,  her  unknown  boyish  admirer 
grown  up  to  coarse  and  criminal  manhood.  She  sought  to 
escape  by  him  with  the  loud  cry  that  Dennis  heard,  but  he 
planted  his  big  grimy  hand  in  the  delicate  frill  of  het 
night-robe  where  it  clasped  her  throat,  and  with  a  coarse 
laugh  said  : 

"  Not  so  fast,  my  dainty !  you  are  in  my  power  this 
time,  and  I  can  take  what  I  please." 

Trembling  and  half  fainting  (for  she  had  no  physical 
courage)  she  cried  for  Dennis,  and  never  did  knightly 
heait  respond  with  more  brave  and  loving  throb  to  the  cry 
of  helpless  woman  than  his.  He  came  with  almost  the 
impetus  of  a  thunderbolt,  and  young  Gudgeon,  startled, 
looked  around,  and  catching  a  glimpse  of  his  blazing  eyes, 
dropped  his  hold  on  Chrisiine,  and  shrank  and  cowered 
from  the  blow  he  could  not  avert.  Before  his  hand  could 
15 


"CHRISTINE,   awake!"  415 

instinctively  reach  the  pistol  it  sought,  there  was  a  thud, 
and  he  fell  like  a  log  to  the  floor.  Then  springing  upon 
him  Dennis  took  away  his  weapons,  and  seizing  him  by  the 
collar  of  his  coat,  dragged  him  backward  downstairs  and 
thrust  him  into  the  street.  Pointing  his  own  pistol  at  him 
he  said,  "  If  you  trouble  us  again,  I  will  shoot  vou  like  a 
dog!" 

The  villain  slunk  off  more  quickly  than  on  the  former 
occasion,  but  in  a  rage  of  disappointment.  Finding  some 
kindred  spirits  sacking  a  liquor-store  not  far  off,  he  joined 
the  orgy,  seeking  to  drown  his  feelings  in  rum,  and  suc- 
ceeded so  effectually  that  he  lay  in  the  gutter  soon  after, 
and  the  escaping  multitude  trampled  over  him,  and  soon 
the  fire  blotted  out  his  miserable  existence,  as  it  did  that 
of  so  many  who  rendered  themselves  helpless  by  drink. 

When  Dennis  returned  he  found  Christine  panting  help- 
lessly on  a  chair. 

"  Oh,  dress  !  dress  !  "  he  cried.  "  We  have  not  a  mo- 
ment to  spare." 

The  sparks  and  cinders  were  falling  about  the  house,  a 
perfect  storm  of  fire.  The  roof  was  already  blazing  and 
smoke  pouring  down  the  stairs. 

At  his  suggestion  she  had  at  first  laid  out  a  heavy 
woollen  dress  and  Scotch  plaid  shawl.  She  nervously 
sought  to  put  on  the  dress,  but  her  trembling  fingers  could 
not  fasten  it  over  her  wildly  throbbing  bosom.  Dennis  saw 
that  in  the  terrible  emergency  he  must  act  the  part  of  a 
brother  or  husband,  and  springing  forward  he  assisted  her 
with  the  dexterity  he  had  learned  in  childhood. 

Just  then  a  blazing  piece  of  roof,  borne  on  the  wings  of 
the  gale,  crashed  through  the  window,  and  in  a  moment  the 
room,  that  had  seemed  like  a  beautiful  casket  for  a  still 
more  exquisite  jewel,  was  in  flames. 

Hastily  v/rapping  Christine  in  the  blanket  shawl,  he 


41 6  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

snatched  her,  shrieking  and  wringing  her  hands,  into  the 
street. 

Holding  his  hand  she  ran  two  or  three  blocks  with  ab 
the  speed  her  wild  terror  prompted;  then  her  strength 
hegan  to  fail,  and  she  pantingly  cried  that  she  could  run  no 
longer.  But  this  rapid  rush  carried  them  out  of  immediate 
peril,  and  brought  them  into  the  flying  throng  pressing 
their  way  north  and  westward.  Wedged  into  the  multitude 
they  could  only  move  on  with  it  in  the  desperate  struggle 
forward.  But  fire  was  falling  about  them  like  a  meteoric 
shower. 

Suddenly  Christine  uttered  a  sharp  cry  of  pain.  She 
had  stepped  on  a  burning  cinder,  and  then  realized  for  the 
first  time,  in  her  excitement,  that  her  feet  were  bare. 

"  Oh,  what  shall  I  do  ? "  she  cried  piteously,  limping  and 
leaning  heavily  on  Dennis'  arm. 

"  Indeed,  Miss  Ludolph,  from  my  heart  I  pity  you." 

"  Can  you  save  me  ?  Oh,  do  you  think  you  can  save 
me  ? "  she  moaned  in  an  agony  of  fear. 

"  Yes,  I  feel  sure  I  can.  At  any  rate  I  shall  not  leave 
you,"  and  taking  her  a  little  out  of  the  jostling  crowd  he 
knelt  and  bound  up  the  burned  foot  with  his  handkerchief. 
A  little  farther  on  they  came  to  a  shoe-store  with  doors 
qoen  and  owners  gone.  Almost  carrying  Christine  into  it, 
for  her  other  foot  was  cut  and  bleeding,  he  snatched  down 
a  pair  of  boy's  stout  gaiters,  and  wiping  with  another  hand- 
kerchief the  blood  and  dust  from  her  tender  little  feet,  he 
made  the  handkerchiefs  answer  for  stockings,  and  drew  the 
shoes  on  over  them. 

In  the  brief  moment  so  occupied,  Christine  said,  with 
tears  in  her  eyes,  "  Mr.  Fleet,  how  kind  you  are !  How 
little  I  deserve  all  this !" 

He  looked  up  with  a  happy  smile,  and  she  little  knew 
that  her  few  words  amply  repaid  him. 


"CHRISTINE,   awake!"  417 

There  was  a  crash  in  the  direction  of  the  fire.  With  a 
cry  of  fear,  Christine  put  out  her  hands  and  clung  to  him. 

"  Oh,  we  shall  perish  !    Are  you  not  afraid  ? " 

*'  I  tremble  for  you,  Miss  Ludolph." 

"  Not  for  yourself? " 

"  No !  why  should  I  ?  I  am  safe.  Heaven  and  mother 
are  just  beyond  this  tempest." 

"  I  would  give  worlds  for  your  belief." 

"  Come  quick  ! "  cried  he,  and  they  joined  the  fugitives, 
and  for  a  half  hour  pressed  forward  as  fast  as  was  possible 
through  the  choked  streets,  Dennis  merely  saying  an  en- 
couraging word  now  and  then.  Suddenly  she  felt  herself 
carried  to  one  side,  and  falling  to  the  ground  with  him. 
In  a  moment  he  lifted  her  up,  and  she  saw  with  a  sicken- 
ing terror  an  infuriated  dray-horse  plunging  through  the 
crowd,  striking  down  men,  women,  and  children. 

"Are  you  hurt?"  he  asked  gently,  passing  his  aim 
around  her  and  helping  her  forward,  that  they  might  not 
lose  a  single  step. 

"  Awful !  awful !  "  she  said  in  a  low  shuddering  tone. 

The  dreadful  scenes  and  danger  were  beginning  to 
overpower  her. 

A  little  farther  on  they  reached  an  avenue  to  the 
northwest  through  which  Dennis  hoped  to  escape.  But 
they  could  make  but  little  headway  through  the  dense 
masses  of  drays,  carriages  and  human  beings,  and  at  last 
everything  came  to  a  dead  lock.  Their  only  hope  was 
to  stand  in  their  place  till  the  living  mass  moved  on  again. 

Strange,  grotesque,  and  sad  beyond  measure  were  the 
scenes  by  which  they  were  surrounded.  By  the  side  of  the 
aristocratic  Christine,  now  Baroness  of  Ludolph,  stood  a 
stout  Irishwoman  hugging  a  grunting,  squealing  pig  to  her. 
breast.  A  little  in  advance  a  hook-nosed  spinster  carried 
in  a  cage  a  hook-nosed  parrot  that  kept  discordantly  cry 


4i8  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

ing,  "  Poll}  want  a  cracker."  At  Dennis'  left  a  delicate 
lady  of  the  highest  social  standing  clasped  to  her  bare 
bosom  a  babe*  that  slept  as  peacefully  as  in  the  luxurious 
nursery  at  home.  At  her  side  was  a  little  girl  carrying  as 
tenderly  a  large  wax  doll.  A  diamond  necklace  sparkled 
like  a  circlet  of  fire  around  the  lady's  neck.  Her  husband 
had  gone  to  the  south  side,  and  she  had  had  but  time  to 
snatch  this  and  her  children.  A  crowd  of  obscene  and 
profane  rowdies  stood  just  behind  them,  and  with  brutal 
jest  and  coarse  laughter  they  passed  around  a  whiskey- 
bottle.  One  of  these  roughs  caught  a  glimpse  of  the 
diamond  necklace,  and  was  putting  forth  his  blackened 
hand  to  grasp  it,  when  Dennis  pointed  Gudgeon's  pistol 
at  him  and  said  : 

"  This  is  law  now !  " 

The  fellow  slunk  back.  Just  before  them  was  a  dray 
with  a  corpse  half  covered  with  a  blanket.  The  family 
sat  around  crying  and  wringing  their  hands,  and  the  driver 
stood  on  his  seat,  cursing  and  gesticulating  for  those  in 
advance  to  move  on.  Some  moments  passed,  but  there 
was  no  progress.  Dennis  became  very  anxious,  for  the 
fire  was  rapidly  approaching,  and  the  sparks  were  falling 
like  hail.  Every  few  moments  some  woman's  dress  was 
ablaze,  or  some  one  struck  by  the  flying  brands.  Shrieks 
for  help  were  heard  on  every  side.  Christine,  being  clad 
in  woollen,  escaped  this  peril  in  part.  She  stood  at  Dennis' 
side  trembling  like  a  leaf,  with  her  hands  over  her  face  to 
shut  out  the  terrible  sights. 

At  last  the  driver,  fearing  for  his  life,  sprang  off  his 
d  ray  and  left  all  to  their  fate.  But  a  figure  took  his  place 
that  thrilled  Dennis'  heart  with  horror. 

There  on  the  high  seat  stood  Susie  Winthrop — rather 
Mrs.  Learned.  The  light  of  insanity  glowed  in  her  eyes; 
her  long  hair  swept  away  to  the  nortii,  and  turning  toward 


"CHRISTINE,   awake!"  419 

the  fier}'  tempest  she  bent  forward  as  if  looking  for  some 
one.  But  after  a  moment  she  sadly  shook  her  head,  as  if 
she  had  sought  in  vain.  Suddenly  she  reached  out  her 
white  arms  toward  the  fire,  and  sang  clear  and  sweet 
above  the  horrid  din : 

O  burning  flakes  of  fiery  snow. 

Bury  me  too,  bury  me  deep; 
My  lover  sleeps  thy  banks  below; 

Fall  on  me  that  1  may  sleep  ! 

At  this  moment  a  blazing  brand  fell  upon  the  horses' 
heads;  they  started  forward,  and  the  crazed  lady  fell  over 
on  the  corpse  below.  The  animals  being  thoroughly  terri- 
fied turned  sharp  around  on  the  sidewalk,  and  tore  their 
way  right  toward  the  fire,  trampling  those  down  in  their 
track,  and  so  vanished  with  their  strangely  assorted  load. 

Dennis,  fearing  to  stay  any  longer  where  he  was,  deter- 
mined to  follow  in  their  wake  and  find  a  street  leading  to 
the  north  less  choked,  even  though  it  might  be  nearer 
the  fire,  and  so  with  his  trembling  companion  he  pressed 
forward  again. 

Two  blocks  below  he  found  one  comparatively  clear, 
but  in  terrible  proximity  to  the  conflagration.  Indeed,  the 
houses  were  burning  on  each  side,  but  the  street  seemed 
clear  of  flame.  He  thought  that  by  swiftly  running  they 
could  get  through.  But  Christine's  strength  was  fast  fail- 
ing her,  and  just  as  they  reached  the  middle  of  the  block 
a  tall  brick  building  fell  across  the  street  before  them! 
Thus  their  only  path  of  escape  was  blocked  by  a  blazing 
mass  of  ruins  that  it  would  have  been  death  to  cross. 

They  seemed  hemmed  in  on  every  side,  and  Dennis 
groaned  in  agony. 

Christine  looked  for  a  second  at  the  impassable  fiery 
barrier,  then  at  Dennis,  in  whose  face  and  manner   she 


420  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

read  unutterable  sympathy  for  herself,  and  the  truth  flashed 
upon  her. 

With  a  piercing  shriek  she  fainted  dead  away  in  his 
arms 


CHAPTER    XLVl. 

ON    THE    BEACH. 


In  the  situation  of  supreme  peril  described  in  the  last 
chapter,  Dennis  stood  a  second  helpless  and  hopeless 
Christine  rested  a  heavy  burden  in  his  arms,  happily  un 
conscious.  Breathing  an  agonized  prayer  to  heaven,  he 
looked  around  for  any  possibility  of  escape.  Just  then  an 
express-wagon  was  driven  furiously  toward  them,  its  driver 
seeking  his  way  out  by  the  same  path  that  Dennis  had 
chosen.  As  he  reached  them  the  man  saw  the  hopeless 
obstruction,  and  wheeled  his  horses.  As  he  did  so,  quick 
as  thought,  Dennis  threw  Christine  into  the  bottom  of  the 
wagon,  and  clinging  to  it,  climbed  into  it  himself  He 
turned  her  face  downward  from  the  fire,  and  covering  his 
own  lay  down  beside  her,  trusting  all  now  to  God. 

The  driver  urged  his  horses  toward  the  lake,  believing 
that  his  only  chance.  They  tore  away  through  the  blazing 
streets.  The  poor  man  was  soon  swept  from  his  seat  and 
perished,  but  his  horses  rushed  madly  on  till  they  plunged 
into  the  lake. 

At  the  sound  of  water  Dennis  lifted  his  head  and  gave 
.1  cry  of  joy.  It  seemed  that  the  hand  of  God  had  snatched 
them  from  death.  Gently  he  lifted  Christine  out  ujon  the 
sands  and  commenced  bathing  her  face  from  the  water 
that    nioke   in    spray   at  h.is  feet.     She  soon  '-evivtJ    and 


ON   THE   BEACH.  4ii 

looked  around.  In  a  voice  full  of  awe  and  wonder  she 
whispered  : 

"  Ah  !  there  is  another  world  and  another  .ife  after  all." 

"  Indeed  there  is,  Miss  Ludolph,"  said  Dennis,  support- 
ing her  on  his  arm  and  bending  over  her,  "  but,  thanks  to 
a  merciful  Providence,  you  are  in  this  one  yet." 

"  How  is  it  ? "  she  said  with  a  bewildered  air,  "  I  do 
not  understand.  The  last  I  remember,  we  were  sur- 
rounded by  fire,  you  were  despairing,  and  it  seemed  that  I 
died." 

"  You  fainted,  Miss  Ludolph.  But  God  as  by  a  miracle 
brought  us  out  of  the  fiery  furnace,  and  for  the  present  we 
are  safe."  After  she  had  sufficiently  rallied  from  her  ex- 
cessive exhaustion  and  terror,  he  told  her  how  they  had 
escaped. 

"I  see  no  God  in  it  all,"  she  said,  "only  a  most  fortu- 
nate opportunity  of  which  you,  with  great  nerve  and  pres- 
ence of  mind,  availed  yourself.  To  you  alone,  again  and 
again  this  dreadful  night,  I  owe  my  life." 

"  God  uses  us  as  His  instruments  to  do  His  will.  The 
light  will  come  to  you  by-and-by,  and  you  will  learn  a  bet 
ter  wisdom." 

"  In  this  awful  conflagration  the  light  has  come.  On 
every  side  I  see  as  in  letters  of  fire,  *  There  is  no  God.' 
If  it  were  otherwise  these  scenes  would  be  impossible. 
And  any  being  permitting  or  causing  the  evils  and  crimes 
this  dreadful  night  has  witnessed,  I  should  fear  and  hate 
beyond  the  power  of  language  to  express." 

She  uttered  these  words  sitting  on  the  sands  with  mul- 
titudes of  others,  her  face  (from  which  Dennis  had  washed 
the  dust  and  smoke)  looking  in  the  glare  so  wan  and  white 
that  he  feared,  with  a  sickening  dread,  that  through  expos- 
ure, terror,  or  some  of  the  many  dangers  by  which  they 
were  surrounded,  she  might  pass  into  the  future  world  with 


422  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

all  her  unbelief  and  spiritual  darkness.  He  yearned  over 
her  with  a  solicitude  and  pity  that  he  could  not  express. 
She  seemed  so  near — indeed  he  could  feel  her  form  tremble, 
as  he  knelt  beside  her,  and  supported  her  by  his  arm  — 

and  yet,  in  view  of  her  faithless  state,  how  widely  were 
the)  separated  !  Should  any  one  of  the  many  perils  about 
them  quench  the  little  candle  of  her  life,  which  even  now 
flickered  faintly,  where  in  the  wide  universe  could  he  hope 
to  meet  her  again  ?  God  can  no  doubt  console  and  make 
up  every  loss  to  His  children,  but  the  passionate  heart,  with 
its  intense  human  love,  clings  to  its  idol  none  the  less. 

Dennis  saw  that  the  fire  would  probably  hem  them  in 
on  the  beach  the  remainder  of  the  night,  and  the  follow- 
ing day.  He  determined  therefore  in  every  way  possible  to 
beguile  the  weary,  perilous  hours,  and,  if  she  would  permit 
it,  to  lead  her  thoughts  heavenward.  Hence  arose  from 
time  to  time  religious  conversations,  to  which,  with  joy,  he 
found  Christine  no  longer  averse.  Indeed  she  often 
introduced  them. 

Chafing  her  hands  he  said  in  the  accents  of  the  deep- 
est sympathy : 

"  How  I  pity  you,  Miss  Ludolph.  It  must  indeed  be 
terrible  to  possess  your  thoughtful  mind — to  realize  these 
scenes  so  keenly,  and  yet  have  no  faith  in  a  Divine  Friend. 
I  cannot  explain  to  you  the  mystery  of  evil — why  it  came,, 
or  why  it  exists.  Who  can  ?  I  am  but  one  of  God's  little 
children,  and  only  know  with  certainty  that  my  Heavenly 
Father  loves  and  will  take  care  of  me." 

"  How  do  you  know  it  ? "  she  asked  eagerly. 

"  In  several  ways.     Mainly  because  I  feel  it." 

"  It  all  seems  so  vague  and  unreal,"  she  sighed  dream- 
ily "There  is  nothing  certain,  assured.  There  is  no 
test  by  which    I    can  at   once  know  the    truth." 

"  That   does    not   prevent     the   truth     from   existing. 


ON   THE   BEACH.  423 

Because  some  are  blind  is  no  proof  that  color  does  not 
exist." 

"But  how  can  you  be  sure  there  is  a  God  ?  you  never 
saw  Him."  • 

"  I  do  not  see  the  heat  that  scorches  us,  but  I  feel  it, 
and  know  it  exists." 

"  But  I  feel  the  heat  the  same  as  yourself,  but  I  have 
no  consciousness  of  a  Divine  Being." 

"That  does  not  take  away  my  consciousness  that  He 
is  my  Saviour  and  friend?  As  yet  you  are  spiritually 
dead.  If  you  were  physically  dead,  you  would  not  feel 
the  heat  of  this  fire." 

"  Oh,  it  is  all  mystery — darkness,"  she  cried  piteously. 

The  sun  had  now  risen  quite  above  the  waters  of  the 
lake,  but  seen  through  the  lurid  smoke  swept  over  its 
face,  it  seemed  like  one  of  the  great  red  cinders  that 
were  continually  sailing  over  their  heads.  In  the  frightful 
glare,  the  transition  from  night  to  day  had  scarcely 
been  noted.  The  long  narrow  beach  was  occupied  by 
thousands  of  fugitives.  They  were  hemmed  in  on  every 
side.  On  the  south  was  the  river  skirted  with  fire,  while 
opposite,  on  the  west,  the  heat  was  almost  intolerable ;  on 
the  east  the  cold  waves  of  the  lake,  and  on  the  north  a 
burning  pier  that  they  could  not  cross.  Thefr  only  hope 
was  to  cling  to  that  narrow  line  where  fire  and  water  min- 
gled, and  with  one  element  to  fight  the  other.  Here  again 
was  seen  that  mingling  of  every  cfass  which  the  streets 
and  every  place  of  refuge  witnessed.  Judges,  physicians, 
statesmen,  clergymen,  bankers,  were  jostled  by  roughs  and 
thieves.  The  laborer  sat  on  the  sand  with  his  family, 
side  by  side  with  the  millionnaire  and  his  household.  The 
poor  debauched  woman  of  the  town  moaned  and  shivered 
in  her  scant  clothing,  at  a  sliglit  remove  from  the  most 
refined  Christian  lady.     In   the  unparalleled  disaster,  all 


424 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


social  distinctions  were  lost,  levelled  like  the  beach  on 
which  they  cowered.  From  some  groups  was  heard  the 
voice  of  prayer,  from  others,  bitter  wailings  and  passionate 
cries  for  lost  members  of  t;he  family ;  others  had  saved 
quantities  of  vile  whiskey,  if  nothing  else,  and  made  the 
scene  more  ghastly  by  orgies  that  seemed  not  of  earth. 
Added  to  the  liquor,  was  the  mad  excitement  and  reckless- 
ness which  often  seizes  the  depraved  classes  on  such 
occasions.  They  committed  excesses  that  cannot  be 
mentioned — these  drunken,  howling,  fighting  wretches. 
Obscene  epithets  and  words  fell  around  like  blows.  And 
yet  all  were  so  occupied  with  their  own  misfortunes,  suifer- 
ings  and  danger,  that  they  scarcely  heeded  those  about 
them,  unless  they  became  very  violent. 

Upon  this  heterogeneous  mass  of  humanity  the  fire 
rained  down  almost  as  we  imagine  it  might  have  fallen 
upon  the  doomed  cities  of  the  plain,  and  the  hot  breath  of 
the  flames  scorched  the  exposed  cheek  and  crisped  even 
eyebrows  and  hair.  Sparks,  flakes,  cinders,  pieces  of 
roof,  and  fiery  pebbles  from  the  same  seemed  to  fill  the 
air,  and  often  cries  and  shrieks  announced  that  furni- 
ture and  bedding  that  many  had  dragged  thither,  and  even 
the  clothing  of  women  and  children,  were  burningk  Added 
to  all  the  other  terrors  of  the  scene  was  the  presence  of 
large  numbers  of  horses  and  cattle,  snorting  and  plunging 
in  their  terror  and  pain. 

But  the  sound  that  smote  Dennis'  heart  with  the  deep- 
est commiseration  was  the  continuous  wail  of  helpless  little 
children,  many  of  them  utterly  separated  from  parents  and 
friends,  and  in  the  very  agony  of  fear. 

He  greatly  dreaded  the  effect  of  these  scenes  jpon 
Christine,  knowing  how,  in  the  luxurious  past,  she  had  been 
shielded  from  every  rough  experience.  But  she  at  lenf^th 
rallied  into  soinetiiing  like  composure.     Her  constitut  .-)ii 


ON  THE   BEACH.  425 

was  elastic  and  full  of  vitality,  and  after  escaping  from 
immediate  danger  she  again  began  to  hope.  Moreover,  to 
a  degree  that  even  she  could  not  understand,  his  presence 
was  a  source  of  strength  and  courage,  and  her  heart  clung 
to  him  with  desperate  earnestness,  believing  him  the  sole 
barrier  against  immediate  death,  and  (what  she  dreaded 
scarcely  less)  a  lonely,  wretched  existence,  should  her  ^  life 
be  spared. 

Though  he  never  lost  sight  of  her  a  moment,  and  kept 
continually  wetting  her  hair  and  person,  he  found  time  to 
render  assistance  to  others,  and  by  carrying  his  hat  full  of 
water  here  and  there,  extinguished  many  a  dangerous 
spark.  He  also,  again  and  again,  snatched  up  little  chil- 
dren from  under  the  trampling  hoofs  of  frightened  horses. 

As  she  watched  him,  so  self-forgetful  and  fearless,  she 
realized  more  and  more  vividly  that  he  was  sustained  and 
animated  by  some  mighty  principle  that  she  knew  nothing 
of,  and  could  not  understand.  The  impression  grew  upon 
her  that  he  was  right  and  she  wrong.  Though  it  all 
remained  in  mystery  and  doubt,  she  could  not  resist  the 
logic  of  true  Christian  action. 

But  as  the  day  advanced  the  flames  grew  hotter,  and 
their  breath  more  withering.  About  noon  Dennis  noticed 
that  some  shanties  on  the  sands  near  them  were  in  danger 
of  catching  fire  and  periling  all  in  that  vicinity.  Therefore 
he  said  :  "  Miss  Ludolph,  stay  here  where  I  leave  you  for 
a  little  time,  so  that  I  may  know  just  where  to  find  you." 

"  Oh,  do  not  leave  me,"  she  pleaded,  "  I  have  no  one  in 
the  wide  world  to  help  me  save  you." 

"  I  shall  not  be  beyond  call.  You  see  those  shanties 
there  ;  if  possible  we  must  keep  them  from  burning,  or  the 
fire  will  come  too  near  for  safety."  Then,  starting  forward 
be  cried : 

"  Who  will  volunteer  to  keep  the  fire  back  ?  All  must 
see  that  if  thrse  buildings  burn  we  shall  be  in  dav^er." 


426  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

Quite  a  number  of  men  stepped  forward,  and  Avith  hats 
and  anything  that  would  hold  water  they  commenced  wet- 
ting the  old  rookeries.  But  the  fiery  storm  swooped  stead- 
ily down  on  them,  and  their  eflforts  were  as  futile  as  to  beat 
back  the  wind.  Suddenly  a  mass  of  flame  leaped  upon 
them  and  in  a  moment  they  were  all  ablaze. 

"  Into  the  lake,  quick !  "  cried  Dennis,  and  all  rushed 
foi  the  cool  waters. 

Lifting  Christine  from  the  sand,  and  passing  his  arm 
around  her  trembling,  shivering  form,  he  plunged  through 
the  breakers,  and  the  crowd  pressed  after  him.  Indeed 
they  pushed  him  so  far  out  in  the  cold  waves  that  he  nearly 
lost  his  footing,  and  for  a  few  moments  Christine  did  hers 
altogether,  and  added  her  cries  to  those  of  the  terror-strick- 
en multitude.  But  pushing  in  a  little  nearer  the  shore,  he 
held  her  firmly  and  said,  with  the  confidence  that  again  in- 
spired hope : 

. "  Courage,  Miss  Ludolph.     With   God's   help   I   will 
save  you  yet." 

Even  as  she  clung  to  him  in  the  water,  she  looked  into 
his  face.  He  was  regarding  her  so  kindly,  so  pitifully,  that 
a  great  and  generous  impulse,  the  richest,  ripest  fruit  of  her 
human  love,  throbbed  at  her  heart,  and  faltered  from  her 
lips — "  Mr.  Fleet,  I  am  not  worthy  of  this  risk  on  your 
part.  If  you  will  leave  me  you  can  save  your  own  life,  and 
your  life  is  worth  so  much  more  than  mine." 

True  and  deep  must  have  been  the  affection  that  could 
lead  Christine  Ludolph  to  say  such  words  to  any  human 
being.  There  was  a  time  when,  in  her  creed,  all  the  woild 
existed  but  to  minister  to  her.  But  she  was  not  sorry  to 
see  the  look  of  pained  surprise  which  came  into  Dennis' 
face  and  hear  him  say  very  sadly  : 

"  Miss  Ludolph,  I  did  not  imagine  that  you  could  think 
me  capable  of  that.     I  had  the  good  fortune  to  rescue  Miss 


ON   THE   BEACH.  427 

drown  to-night,  at  greater  peril  than  this,  and  do  you  think 
I  would  leave  you  ? " 

"  You  are  a  true  knight,  Mr.  Fleet,"  she  said,  humbly, 
*'  and  the  need  and  danger  of  every  defenceless  woman  is 
alike  a  sacred  claim  upon  you." 

Dennis  was  about  to  intimate  that  though  this  was  true 
in  knightly  creed,  still  among  all  the  women  in  the  world 
there  might  be  a  preference,  when  a  score  of  horses,  driven 
before  the  fire,  and  goaded  by  the  burning  cinders,  rushed 
down  the  beach,  into  the  water  of  course,  right  among  the 
human  fugitives. 

Again  went  up  the  cry  of  agony  and  terror.  Some  were 
no  doubt  stricken  down  not  to  rise  again.  In  the  melee 
Dennis  pushed  out  into  deeper  water,  where  the  frantic 
animals  could  not  plunge  upon  him.  A  child  floated  near, 
and  he  snatched  it  up.  As  soon  as  the  poor  brutes  became 
quiet,  clasping  Christine  with  his  right  arm  and  holding  up 
the  child  with  the  other  he  waded  into  shallow  water. 

The  peril  was  now  perhaps  at  its  height,  and  all  were 
obliged  to  wet  their  heads,  to  keep  even  their  hair  from 
singeing  and  burning.  Those  on  the  beach  threw  water  on 
each  other  without  cessation.  Many  a  choice  bit  of  prop- 
erty— it  might  be  a  piano,  or  an  express-wagon  loaded  with 
the  choicest  furs  and  driven  to  the  beach  as  a  place  of  fan- 
cied security — now  caught  fire,  and  added  to  the  heat  and 
consternation. 

-  When  this  hour  of  extreme  danger  had  passed,  stand- 
ing with  the  cold  billows  of  the  lake  breaking  round  him, 
and  the  billows  of  fire  still  rolling  overhead,  Dennis  com* 

menced  singing  in  his  loud  clear  voice  : 

» 
"  Jesus  lover  of  my  soul, 
Let  me  to  thy  bosom  flv. 
While  the  billows  near  me  roll. 
While  the  tempest  still  is  high." 


42S  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY, 

Voice  after  voice  joined  in,  some  loud  and  strong,  but 
more  weak  and  trembling,  the  pitiful  cry  of  poor  terror- 
stricken  women  to  the  only  One  who  seemingly  could  help 
them  in  their  bitter  extremity.  Never  before  were  those 
beautiful  words  sung  in  such  accents  of  clinging,  touching 
faith;  its  sweet  rise  and  cadence  was  heard  above  the 
roar  of  the  flames  and  the  breakers. 

Christine  could  only  cling  weeping  to  Dennis. 

When  the  hymn  ceased,  in  harshest  discord,  the  voice 
of  a  half-drunken  man  grated  on  their  ears. 

"  An'  what  in  bloody  blazes  does  yer  Jasus  bum  us  all 
up  for,  I'd  like  to  know.  Sure  an  he's  no  right  to  send  us 
to  hell  before  our  time." 

"  Oh,  hush  1  hush  !"  cried  a  dozen  voices,  shocked  and 
pained. 

"  Divil  a  bit  will  I  hush,  sure ;  an'  haven't  I  as  good  a 
right  to  have  me  say  as  that  singin'  parson  !  " 

"  You  are  an  Irishman,  are  you  not  ? "  said  Dennis,  now 
venturing  out  of  the  water. 

"  Yis !  what  have  ye  got  to  say  agin  it  ?  "  asked  the  man, 
belligerent  at  once. 

"  Did  you  ever  know  an  Irishman  refuse  to  do  what  a 
lady  asked  of  him  ? "  , 

"  Faith  no,  and  I  niver  will." 

"  Then  this  lady,  who  is  sick  and  suffering,  asks  you  to 
please  keep  still,  and  I  will  be  still  too  ;  so  that's  fair." 

The  Irishman  scratched  his  head  a  moment,  and  said 
in  a  quieter  tone  : 

"  Since  ye  spake  as  civil  and  dacent,  I'll  do  as  ye  sez  j 
and  here's  to  the  leddy's  health,"  and  he  finished  a  bottlt 
of  whiskey  which  soon  laid  him  out  on  the  beach. 

"  Thank  you  !  thank  you  !  "  said  several  grateful  voices 
on  either  side. 

Dennis  found  the  mother  of  the  child  and  gave  it  to 


ON   THE   BEACH.  429 

her ;  and  then  causing  Christine  to  sit  down  near  the 
water,  where  he  could  easily  throw  it  on  her,  he  stood  at 
her  side,  vigilant  and  almost  tender  in  his  solicitude.  Her 
tears  were  falling  very  fast,  and  he  presently  stooped  down 
and  said  gently  :  "  Miss  Ludolph,  I  think  the  worst  of 
the  danger  is  over." 

"  Oh,  Mr.  Fleet,"  she  whispered,  "  dreadful  as  it  may 
seem  to  you,  the  words  of  that  drunken  brute  there  are 
nearer  the  language  of  my  heart  than  those  of  your  sweet 
hymn.  How  can  a  good  God  permit  such  creatures  and 
evils  to  exist  ? " 

"Again  I  must  say  to  you,"  said  Dennis,  "that  I 
cannot  explain  the  mystery  of  evil.  But  I  know  this, 
God  is  superior  to  it ;  He  will  at  last  triumph  over  it. 
The  Bible  reveals  Him  to  us  as  able  and  as  seeking  to 
deliver  all  who  will  trust  Him  and  work  with  Him,  and 
those  who  venture  out  upon  His  promises  find  them  true. 
Miss  Ludolph,  this  is  not  merely  a  matter  of  theory,  argu- 
ment and  belief.  It  is  more  truly  a  matter  of  experience. 
The  inspired  Bible  invites,  *  Oh,  taste  and  see  that  God  is 
good.'  I  have  tasted  and  know  He  is.  I  have  trusted 
Him  for  years,  and  He  never  failed  me." 

"  You  certainly  have  been  sustained  throughout  this 
dreadful  scene  by  a  principle  that  I  cannot  understand, 
but  I  Would  give  all  the  world  to  possess  it." 

*  You  may  possess  it.  Miss  Ludolph." 

"  How  ?  how  ? "  she  asked  eagerly. 

"  Do  you  wish  to  believe  as  I  do  ? " 

"  Yes,  indeed  ;  and  yet  my  heart  rebels  against  a  God 
who  permits,  even  if  He  does  not  cause,  all  this  evil." 

"  Does  it  rebel  against  a  Being  who  from  first  to  last 
tries  to  save  men  from  evil  ? " 

"  Tries  !  tries  !  what  an  expression  to  apply  to  a  God  1 
Why  does  He  not  do  it  in  every  case?" 
19 


43 o  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  Because  multitudes  will  not  let  Him." 

"  Oh,  that  is  worse  still.  Surely,  Mr.  Fleet,  you  let 
your  reason  have  nothing  to  do  with  your  faith.  How  can 
a  poor  and  weak  being  like  myself  prevent  an  Almighty  one 
from  doing  what  He  pleases  ? " 

"I  am  stronger  than  you.  Miss  Ludolph,  and  yet  I  could 
not  have  saved  you  to-night  unless  you  had  first  trusted 
me,  and  then  done  everything  in  your  power  to  further  my 
eiforts." 

"  But  your  power  is  human  and  limited,  and  you  say 
God's  is  all-powerful." 

"  Yes,  but  it  is  His  plan  and  purpose  never  to  save  us 
agamst  our  will.  He  has  made  us  in  His  own  image  and 
endowed  us  with  reason,  conscience,  and  a  will  to  choose 
between  good  and  evil.  He  appeals  to  these  noble  facul- 
ties from  first  to  last.  He  has  given  us  hearts,  and  seeks 
to  win  them  by  revealing  His  love  to  us.  Chief  of  all,  His 
spirit,  present  in  the  world,  uses  every,  form  of  truth  in  per- 
suading and  making  us  willing  to  become  His  true  chil- 
dren. So  you  see  that  neither  on  the  one  hand  does  God 
gather  us  up  like  drift-wood,  nor  does  He  on  the  othet 
drag  us  at  His  chariot  wheels,  unwilling  captives,  as  did 
those  who,  at  various  times,  have  sought  to  overrun  the 
world  by  force.  God  seeks  to  conquer  the  world  by  the 
might  of  the  truth,  by  the  might  of  love." 

Christine  was  hanging  with  the  most  eager  interest  on 
his  words.  Suddenly  his  eyes,  which  had  expressed  such 
a  kindly  and  almost  tender  interest  in  her,  blazed  with 
indignation,  and  he  darted  up  the  beach.  Turning  around 
she  saw,  at  some  little  distance  off,  a  young  woman  most 
scantily  clad,  clinging  desperately  to  a  bundle  which  a 
large  coarse  man  was  trying  to  wrench  from  her.  The 
wretch,  finding  that  he  could  not  loosen  her  hold,  struck 
her  in  the  face  with  such  force  that  she  fell  stunned  upon 


ON  THE  BEACH. 


43' 


the  ground,  and  the  bundle  flew  out  of  her  hand.  He 
eagerly  snatched  it  up,  believing  it  to  contain  jewelry  ;  but 
before  he  could  escape  he  was  confronted  by  an  unexpected 
enemy.  But  Dennis  was  in  a  passion,  and  withal  weak  and 
exhausted,  while  his  adversary  was  cool,  and  an  adept  in  the 
pugilistic  art.  The  two  men  fought  savagely,  and  Chris- 
tine, forgetting  herself  in  her  instinctive  desire  to  help 
Dennis,  was  rushing  to  his  side,  crying  : 

"  If  there  is  a  man  here  worthy  of  the  name,  let  him 
strike  for  the  right !  "  but  before  she  and  others  could  reach 
the  combatants  the  thief  had  planted  his  fist  on  Dennis' 
temple.  Though  the  latter  partially  parried  the  blow,  it  fell 
with  such  force  as  to  extend  him  senseless  on  the  earth. 
The  villain,  with  a  shout  of  derision,  snatched  up  the 
bundle  and  dashed  off  apparently  toward  the  fire.  There 
was  but  a  feeble  attempt  made  to  follow  him.  Few  under- 
stood the  case,  and  indeed  scenes  of  violence  and  terror 
had  become  so  common  that  most  had  grown  apathetic, 
save  in  respect  to  their  personal  well-being. 

Christine  lifted  the  pale  face,  down  which  the  blood  was 
trickling,  into  her  lap,  and  cried  in  a  tone  of  indescribable 
anguish : 

"  Oh,  he  is  dead  1  he  is  dead  1 " 

"  Oh  no.  Miss,  he  is  not  dead,  I  guess,"  said  a  good- 
natured  voice  near.  "  Let  me  bring  a  hat  full  of  water 
from  the  lake,  and  that'll  bring  him  to." 

And  so  it  did.  Dennis  opened  his  eyes,  put  his  hand 
to  his  head  and  then  looked  around.  But  when  he  saw 
Christine  bending  over  him  with  tearful  eyes,  and  realized 
how  tenderly  she  had  pillowed  his  aching  head,  he  started 
up  with  a  deep  flush  of  pleasure,  and  said : 

"  Do  not  be  alarmed,  Miss  Ludolph  ;  I  was  only  stunned 
for  a  moment.     Where  is  the  thief? " 

"  Oh,  they  let  him  escape,"  said  Christine  indignantly 


432 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


"  Shame  ' '  cried  Dennis  regaining  his  feet  rather  tin 

steadily. 

"  Wal,  stranger,  a  good  many  wrongs  to-night  must  go 
unrighted." 

The  poor  girl  who  had  been  robbed  sat  on  the  sands 
swaying  back  and  forth,  wringing  her  hands  and  crying 
-that  she  had  lost  everything. 

"  Well,  my  poor  friend,  that  is  about  the  case  with  the 
most  of  us.  We  may  be  thankful  that  we  have  our  lives. 
Here  is  my  coat  (for  her  shoulders  and  neck  were  bare), 
and  if  you  will  come  down  to  the  lake,  this  lady  (pointing 
to  Christine)  will  bathe  the  place  where  the  brute  struck 
you." 

"  Shall  I  not  give  up  my  shawl  to  some  of  these  poor 
creatures  ? "  asked  Christine. 

"  No,  Miss  Ludolph,  I  do  not  know  how  long  we  may 
be  kept  here  ;  but  I  fear  we  shall  suffer  as  much  from  cold 
as  heat,  and  your  life  might  depend  upon  keeping  warm." 

"  I  will  do  whatever  you  bid  me,''  she  said,  looking 
gratefully  at  him. 

"  That  is  the  way  to  feel  and  act  toward  God,"  he  said 
gently. 

But,  with  sudden  impetuosity  she  answered : 

"  I  cannot.  See  what  He  has  just  permitted  to  happen 
before  my  eyes.  Right  has  not  triumphed,  but  the  foulest 
wrong." 

"  You  do  not  see  the  end.  Miss  Ludolph." 

"But  I  must  judge  from  what  I  see." 

After  she  had  bathed  the  poor  girl's  face,  comforted  and 
reassured  her,  Dennis  took  up  the  conversation  again  and 
fcund  Christine  eager  to  listen.  Seldom  was  the  Gospel 
preached  under  stranger  circumstances.  Pausing  ever}' 
few  moments  to  throw  water  over  his  companion,  he  said  : 

"  Faith  is  beyond  reason,  beyond  knowledge,  though 


CHRISTINE  A  CHRISTIAN. 


433 


not  contrary  to  them.  You  are  judging  as  we  do  not  even 
about  the  commonest  affairs — from  a  few  isolated  myste- 
rious facts,  instead  of  carefully  looking  the  subject  all  over. 
You  pass  by  what  is  plain  and  well  understood  to  what  is 
obscure,  and  from  that  point  seek  to  understand  Christi- 
anity. Every  science  has  its  obscure  points  and  mysteries, 
but  who  commences  with  those  to  learn  the  science  ?  Can 
you  ignore  the  fact  that  millions  of  highly  intelligent 
people,  with  every  motive  to  know  the  truth,  have  satisfied 
themselves  as  to  the  reality  of  our  faith  ?  Our  Bible  sys- 
tem of  truth  may  contain  much  that  is  obscure,  even  as 
the  starry  vault  has  distances  that  no  eye  or  telescope  can 
penetrate,  and  this  little  earth  mysteries  that  science  can- 
not solve,  but  there  is  enough  known  and  understood  to 
satisfy  us  perfectly.  Let  me  assure  you,  Miss  Ludolph, 
that  Christianity  rests  on  broad  truths,  and  is  sustained 
by  arguments,  that  no  candid  mind  can  resist,  after  pa- 
tiently considering  them." 

She  shook  her  head,  silenced  perhaps  but  not  satisfied 


CHAPTER   XLVII. 

"prayer  is    mighty." 
christine  a  christian. 


The  day  was  now  declining,  and  the  fire  in  that  part 
of  the  city  opposite  them  had  so  spread  itself,  that  they 
were  beginning  to  have  a  little  respite  from  immediate 
danger.  The  fiery  storm  of  sparks  and  cinders  was  fall- 
ing mostly  to  the  northward. 

Dennis  now  ventured  to  sit  down  almost  for  the  first 
time,  for  he  was  wp aried  beyond  endurance.     The  tremen- 


434  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

dous  danger  and  excitements,  and  tfie  consciousness  of 
peril  to  the  one  most  dear  to  him,  had  kept  him  alert  long 
after  he  ought  to  have  had  rest,  but  over-taxed  nature  now 
asserted  its  rights,  and  the  moment  the  sharp  spur  of 
danger  was  removed,  he  was  overpowered  by  sJeep. 

Christine  spoke  to  him  as  he  sat  near,  but  even  to 
oer  (a  thing  he  could  not  have  imagined  possible)  he  re- 
returned  an  incoherent  reply. 

*'  My  poor  friend,  you  do  indeed  need  rest,"  said  she 
in  kindest  accents. 

He  heard  her  voice  like  a  sweet  and  distant  harmony 
in  a  dream,  swayed  a  moment,  and  would  have  fallen  over 
in  utter  unconsciousness  on  the  sands,  had  she  not  glided 
to  his  side  and  caught  his  head  upon  her  lap. 

In  the  heavy  stupor  that  follows  the  utmost  exhaustion, 
Dennis  slept  hour  after  hour.  The  rest  of  the  day  was  a 
perfect  blank  to  him.  But  Christine,  partially  covering 
and  shading  his  face  with  the  edge  of  her  shawl,  bent 
over  him  as  patient  a  watcher  as  he  had  been  her  brave 
deliverer.  It  was  beautiful  to  see  the  features  once  so 
cold  and  haughty,  now  sweet  with  more  than  womanly 
tenderness.  There  upon  that  desolate  beach,  cold,  hun- 
gry, homeless,  shelterless,  she  was  happier  than  she  had 
been  for  months.  But  she  trembled  as  she  thought  of 
the  future ;  everything  was  so  uncertain.  She  seemed 
involved  in  a  labyrinth  of  dangers  and  difficulties  from 
which  she  could  see  no  path.  She  knew  that  both  store 
and  home  had  gone,  and  probably  most,  if  not  all,  of  her 
father's  foi  tune.  She  felt  that  these  losses  might  greatly 
modify  his  plans,  and  really  hoped  that  they  would  lead 
him  to  remain  in  this  country.  She  felt  almost  sure  that 
he  would  not  go  back  to  Germany  a  poor  man,  and  to 
stay  in  Americc.  ,'""=  to  give  her  a  chance  of  happiness, 
and  happiness  now  meant  turn  over  whom  she  bent.     Fox 


CHRISTINE  A  CHRISTIAN.  435 

a  long  time  she  had  felt  that  she  could  give  un  all  the 
world  for  him,  but  now  existence  was  scarcely  en  'urable 
^without  him.  To  the  degree  that  her  love  had  been 
slowly  kindled,  was  it  intense,  the  steady  concentrated 
passion  of  a  strong,  resolute  nature,  for  the  first  time  fully 
aroused.  All  indecision  passed  from  her  mind,  and  she 
was  ready  to  respond  whenever  he  should  speak ;  but 
woman's  silence  sealed  her  lips,  and  more  than  maiden 
delicacy  masked  her  heart.  While  she  bent  over  him 
with  an  expression  that,  had  he  opened  his  eyes,  might 
have  caused  him  to  imagine  for  a  moment  that  his  sleep 
had  been  death,  and  he  had  wakened  in  heaven,  yet  he 
must  needs  awake  to  find  that  the  look  and  manner  of 
earth  had  returned.  Her  sensitive  pride  made  her 
guarded  even  in  expressing  her  gratitude,  and  she  pur- 
posed to  slip  his  head  off  upon  her  shawl  whenever  he 
showed  signs  of  awakening,  so  that  he  might  believe  the 
earth  only  had  been  his  resting-place. 

But  now  in  his  unconsciousness,  and  unnoted  by  all 
around,  indeed  more  completely  isolated  by  the  universal 
misery  and  apathy  about  her  than  she  could  have  been  in 
her  own  home,  with  a  delicious  sense  of  security,  she  bent 
her  eyes  upon  him,  and  toyed  daintily  with  the  curling 
locks  on  his  brow.  Whatever  the  future  might  be,  nothing 
should  rob  her  of  the  strange  unexpected  happiness  of 
this  opportunity  to  be  near  him,  purchased  at  such  cost. 

As  she  sat  there  and  saw  the  fire  rush  and  roar  away 
to  the  northward,  and  the  sun  decline  over  the  ruins  of  her 
earthly  fortune,  she  thought  more  deeply  and  earnestly  of 
life  than  ever  before.  The  long,  heavy  sleep  induced  by 
the  opiate  had  now  taken  away  all  sense  of  drowsiness, 
and  never  had  her  mind  been  clearer.  In  the  light  of  the 
terrible  conflagration  many  things  stood  out  with  a  dis- 
tinctness that  impressed  her  as  never  before.     Wealth  and 


436  :barriers  burned  away. 

rank  had  shrivelled  to  their  true  proportions,  and  she  said 
half  aloud : 

"  That  which  can  vanish  in  a  night  in  flame  and  smoke 
cannot  belong  to  us,  is  not  a  part  of  us.  All  that  has  come 
out  of  the  crucible  of  this  fire  is  my  character,  myself  It 
is  the  same  with  Mr.  Fleet ;  but  comparing  his  character 
with  mine,  how  much  richer  he  is  !  What  if  there  is  a  future 
lif6,  and  we  enter  into  it  with  no  other  possession  than  our 
character?  and  that  which  is  called  soul  or  spirit  is  driven 
forth  from  earth  and  the  body  as  we  have  just  been  from 
our  wealth  and  homes  ?  I  can  no  longer  coolly  and  con- 
temptuously ignore  what  he  believes  as  superstition.  He 
is  not  superstitious,  but  calm,  fearless,  and  seemingly  as- 
sured of  something  that  as  yet  I  cannot  understand.  One 
would  think  that  there  must  be  reality  in  his  belief,  for  it 
sustains  him  and  others  in  the  greatest  of  trials.  The 
hymn  he  sang  was  like  a  magnet  introduced  among  steel 
filings  mingled  with  this  sand.  The  mere  earth  cannot  move, 
but  the  steel  is  instinct  with  life.  So,  while  many  of  us 
could  not  respond,  others  seemed  inspired  at  the  name  of 
Jesus  with  new  hope  and  courage,  and  cried  to  the  Naza- 
rene  as  if  He  could  hear  them.  Why  don't  people  cry  for 
help  to  other  good  men  who  lived  in  the  dim  past,  and 
whose  lives  and  deeds  are  half  myth  and  half  truth  ?  why 
to  this  one  man  only?  for  educated  Catholics  no  longer 
pray  to  the  saints." 

Then  her  thoughts  reverted  to  Mr.  Ludolph. 

"  Poor  father,"  said  she,  "  how  will  he  endure  these 
changes  ?  We  have  not  felt  and  acted  toward  each  other 
as  we  ought.  He  is  now  probably  anxious  beyond  measure, 
fearing  that  I  perished  in  my  sleep,  and  so  I  would,  had  it 
not  been  foi  this  more  than  friend  that  I  have  so  wronged. 
Oh,  that  I  could  make  amends  !  I  wonder — oh,  I  wonder 
if  he  has  any  spark  of  love  left  for  me?     He  seems  kind, 


CHRISTINE  A  CHRISTIAN.  437 

even  tender  but  he  is  so  to  every  one — he  saved  Miss 
Brown — " 

But  here  a  most  violent  interruption  took  place.  Chris- 
tine, in  the  complete  absorption  of  her  thoughts,  had  not 
noticed  that  a  group  of  rough  men  and  women  near  by,  who 
had  been  drinking  all  day,  had  now  become  intoxicated 
and  violent.  They  were  pushing  and  staggering,  howling 
and  fighting  in  reckless  disregard  of  the  comfort  of  others, 
and  before  she  knew  it  she  was  in  the  midst  of  a  drunken 
brawl.  One  rough  fellow  struck  against  her,  and  another 
trod  on  Dennis,  who  started  up  with  a  cry  of  pain.  In  a 
moment  he  comprehended  the  situation,  and  snatching  up 
Christine  and  the  shawl,  he  pushed  his  way  out  of  the 
melee  with  his  right  arm,  the  wretches  striking  at  him  and 
each  other  aimlessly  in  their  fury ;  while  both  men  and 
women  used  language  that  was  worse  than  their  blows. 
After  a  brief  struggle  they  extricated  themselves,  and  made 
their  way  northward  up  the  beach  till  they  found  a  place 
where  the  people  seemed  quiet. 

Dennis'  sudden  awakening  had  revealed  to  him  that  his 
head  had  been  pillowed,  and  it  seemed  such  a  kind  and 
thoughtful  act  on  Christine's  part  that  he  could  scarcely 
believe  it;  at  the  same  time  he  was  full  of  shame  and  self- 
reproach  that  by  his  sleep  he  had  left  her  unguarded,  and 
he  said  : 

"  Miss  Ludolph,  I  hope  you  will  pardon  your  recreant 
knight,  who  slept  while  you  were  in  danger.  But' really  t 
could  not  help  it.  The  spirit  indeed  is  willing,  but  the 
flesh  is  weak." 

*'  It  is  I  who  must  ask  pardon,"  replied  Christine 
warmly.  "  After  your  superhuman  exertions,  your  very  life 
depended  on  rest.  But  I  made  a  wretched  watcher— in- 
deed I  have  lost  confidence  in  myself  every  way.  To  tell 
the  tmth,  Mr.  Fleet,  I  was  lost  in  thought,  and  with  your 
19* 


438  •       BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

permission  I  would  like  to  ask  you  further  about  two  things 
you  said  this  morning.  You  asserted  that  you  knew  God 
loved  you,  and  that  Christianity  was  sustained  by  argu- 
ments that  no  candid  mind  could  resist.  What  are  those 
arguments,  and  how  can  you  know  such  a  comforting 
thing  as  the  love  of  God  ?  " 

His  eyes  lighted  up  in  his  intense  delight  that  she 
should  voluntarily  recur  to  this  subject,  and  he  hoped  that 
God  was  leading  her  by  His  solemn  providence  to  a  knowl- 
edge of  Him,  and  that  he,  in  answer  to  his  own  and  his 
mother's  prayers,  might  be  partly  instrumental  in  bringmg 
the  light.     Therefore  he  said,  earnestly : 

"  Miss  Ludolph,  this  is  scarcely  the  time  and  place  to 
go  over  the  evidences  of  Christianity.  When  in  happy 
security  I  hope  you  may  do  this  at  your  leisure,  and  am 
sure  you  will  be  convinced,  for  I  believe  that  you  honestly 
wish  the  truth.  But  there  is  no  need  that  you  should  wait 
and  look  forward  into  the  uncertain  future  for  this  priceless 
knowledge.  The  father  will  not  keep  his  child  waiting 
who  tries  to  find  him.  God  is  not  far  from  any  one  of  us. 
When  our  Lord  was  on  earth,  He  never  repulsed  those  who 
sought  Him  in  sincerity,  and  He  is  the  true  manifestation 
of  God. 

"Moreover,"  he  continued  reverently,  "God  is  now 
on  earth  as  truly  as  when  Christ  walked  the  waves  of 
Galilee,  or  stood  with  the  life-giving  word  upon  His  lips  at 
the  grave  of  His  friend  Lazarus.  The  mighty  spirit  of  God 
now  dwells  among  men  to  persuade,  help,  and  lead  them 
into  all  truth,  and  I  believe  He  is  guiding  you.  This  Divine 
spirit  can  act  as  directly  on  your  mind  as  did  Christ's 
healing  hand  when  He  touched  blind  eyes,  and  they  saw, 
and  palsied  bodies  and  they  sprang  into  joyous  activity." 

Under  his  eager,  earnest  words,  Christine's  eyes  also 
lighted  up  with  hope,  but  after  a  moment  her  face  became 
very  sad,  and  she  said  wearily : 


CHRISTINE  A  CHRISTIAN 


4S9 


"  Mystery !  mystery  !  you  are  speaking  a  language  that 
I  do  not  understand." 

"  Can  you  not  understand  this :  '  For  God  so  loved  the 
world,  that  he  gave  His  only  begotten  Son,  that  whosoever 
believeth  in  Him  should  not  perish,  but  have  everlasting 
life  ?  and  that  the  Bible  tells  us  that  His  Son  did,  in  very 
truth,  die  that  we  might  live  r"' 

"  Yes,  yes,  I  know  that  the  Bible  seems  to  state  all  that, 
but  there  must  be  some  mistake  about  it.  Why  should  an 
all-powerful  God  take  such  a  costly  indirect  way  of  accom- 
plishing His  purpose  when  a  word  would  suffice  ? " 

"  V/e  will  not  discuss  God's  reasons  ;  •!  think  they  are 
beyond  us.  But  imagining  the  Bible  story  to  be  true,  even 
though  you  do  not  believe  it,  is  not  the  love  of  God  re- 
vealed to  us  through  His  Son,  Jesus  Christ  ? " 

"  Yes,  it  is  the  very  extravagance  of  disinterested  love. 
So  much  so  that  my  reason  revolts  at  it.  It  is  contrary  to 
all  my  ideas  of  Deity  and  power." 

"  Pardon  me.  Miss  Ludolph,  for  saying  it,  but  I  think 
your  ideas  of  Deity  are  borrowed  more  from  mythology  and 
human  greatness  than  from  the  Bible.  Let  your  reason 
stand  aside  a  moment ;  this  is  not  contrary  to  it,  but  beyond 
it.  Imagining  the  Bible  story  true,  can  you  not  wish  it 
true  ?  If  the  man  who  died  on  Calvary  out  of  love  for  you 
and  us  all  is  also  God,  would  you  fear  to  trust  yourself  to 
Him  ?  Could  you  distrust  One  who  loved  you  well  enough 
to  die  for  you  ?  " 

"  No  !  no !  if  I  could  only  believe  it,  no !  But  how 
can  I  ever  be  sure  it  is  true  ?  I  am  sure  of  nothing.  I 
am  not  sure  there  is  a  God.  I  am  not  sure  the  Bible  i? 
more  than  human  in  its  character.  I  feel  as  if  my  feet 
stood  out  upon  those  shifting  waves,  and  that  there  was 
nothing  certain  or  stable.' 

"  But  in  part  you  know  the  truth,  Miss  Ludolph,  though 


44° 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


you  do  not  believe  it,  and  I  believe  that  the  <jod  of  whom 
we  have  spoken  can  directly  reveal  himself  to  you  and  make 
His  truth  as  real  as  it  is  to  me." 

"  Mr.  Fleet,"  cried  Christine,  "  if  I  could  believe  as  you 
do,  I  should  be  the  happiest  of  the  happy,  for  I  should  feel 
that,  however  much  I  suffered  in  this  brief  life,  in  the 
the  existence  beyond  I  should  be  more  than  compensated,'* 
and  covering  her  tearful  face  with  her  hands  she  moaned, 
as  if  it  were  wrung  from  her,  "  I  have  suffered  so  much  and 
there  seemed  no  remedy !  " 

Dennis'  feelings  were  also  deeply  touched,  and  the  dew 
of  sympathy  gathered  in  his  own  eyes.  In  the  gentlest 
accent  he  said  : 

"  Oh,  that  you  could  trust  that  merciful  mighty  One 
who  invites  all  the  heavy  laden  to  come  to  Him  for  rest." 

She  looked  up  and  saw  his  sympathy,  and  was  greatly 
moved.     In  faltering  tones  she  said  : 

"  You  feel  for  me,  Mr.  Fleet.  You  do  not  condemn 
me  in  my  blindness  and  unbelief.  I  cannot  trust  Him 
because  I  am  not  sure  He  exists.  If  there  was  such  a  God 
I  would  gladly  devote  my  whole  being  to  Him  ;  but  I  trust 
you^  and  will  do  anything  you  say." 

"  Will  you  kneel  on  these  sands  with  me  in  prayer  to 
Him  ? "  he  asked,  earnestly. 

She  hesitated,  trembled,  but  at  last  said,  "  Yes." 

He  took  her  hand  as  a  brother  might,  and  they  knelt 
together  on  the  desolate  beach.  The  glow  of  sunset  was 
lost  in  the  redder  glow  of  the  fire  that  smouldered  all  over 
the  ruins,  and  still  raged  in  the  northwest,  and  the  smoke 
and  gathering  gloom  involved  them  in  obscurity. 

'rhou2;h  the  weary,  apathetic  fugitives  regarded  them 
not,  we  believe  angelic  forms  gathered  round,  and  that  the 
heart  of  the  Divine  Father  yearned  toward  His  children. 

When  they  rose,  after  a  simple  prayer  from  Dennis,  in 


CHRISTINE   A  CHRISTIAN.  441 

which  he  pleaded  almost  as  a  child  might  with  an  earthly 
father,  Christine  trembled  like  a  leaf,  and  was  very  pale, 
but  her  face  grew  tearless,  quiet,  and  very  sad.  Dennis 
still  held  her  hand  in  the  warm,  strong  grasp  of  sympathy. 
Gently  she  withdrew  it,  and  said,  in  a  low,  despairing  tone : 

"  It  is  all  in  vain.  There  is  no  answer.  Your  voice 
has  been  lost  in  the  winds  and  waves." 

"  Wait  the  King's  time,"  said  he,  reverently. 

"  You  addi  essed  him  as  Father.  Would  a  good  father 
keep  his  child  waiting?" 

"Yes,  sometimes  he  does  ;  he  is  also  king." 

After  a  moment  she  turned  to  him  the  saddest  face  he 
ever  looked  upon,  and  said  gently,  again  giving  him  h'er 
hand: 

"  Mr.  Fleet,  you  have  done  your  best  for  me,  and  I 
thank  you  all  the  same." 

He  was  obliged  to  turn  away  to  hide  his  feelings. 
Silently  they  again  sat  down  on  the  beach  together.  Wea- 
riness and  something  hke  despair  began  to  tell  on  Chris- 
tine, and  Dennis  trembled  when  he  thonght  of  the  long 
night  of  exposure  before  her.  He  bent  his  face  into  his 
hands  and  prayed  as  he  never  prayed  before.  She  looked 
at  him  wistfully,  and  knew  he  was  pleading  for  her  ;  but 
she  now  believed  it  was  all  in  vain.  The  feeling  grew  upon 
her  that  belief  or  unbelief  was  a  matter  of  education  and 
temperament,  and  that  the  feelings  of  which  Dennis  spoke 
were  but  the  deceptive  emotions  of  cur  agitated  hearts. 
To  that  degree  that  the  Divine  love  seemed  visionary  and 
hopeless,  she  longed  for  hmi  to  speak  of  his  own,  if  in 
truth  it  still  existed,  that  she  could  understand  and 
believe  in.  If  during  what  remained  of  life  she  could  only 
drink  the  sweetness  of  that,  she  felt  it  was  the  best  she 
could  hope  for— and  then  the  blank  of  nothingness. 

But  he  prayed  on,  and  with  something  of  his  mother's 


442  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

faith  seemed  at  last,  as  it  were,  in  the  personal  presence 
of  Christ.  With  an  importunity  that  would  not  be  denied, 
he  entreated  for  her  who  despaired  at  his  side. 

At  last,  putting  her  hand  lightly  on  his  arm,  she  said  • 

'■  Mr.  Fleet,  waste  no  more  time  on  me.  From  the 
gtoans  I  hear,  some  poor  woman  is  sick  or  hurt.  Perhaps 
you  can  do  some  real  good  by  seeing  to  her  needs." 

He  rose  quietly,  feeling  that  in  some  way  God  would 
answer,  and  that  he  must  patiently  wait. 

Going  up  the  beach  a  short  distance  he  found  a  Ger- 
man woman  lying  just  on  the  edge  of  the  water.  In  answer 
to  his  questions,  he  learned  from  her  broken  English  that 
she  was  sick  and  in  pain.  A  sudden  thought  struck  him. 
In  seeking  to  help  another,  might  not  Christine  find  help 
herself,  and  in  the  performance  of  a  good  deed,  might  not 
the  author  of  all  good  reveal  himself?  Returning  to  her, 
he  said : 

"  Miss  Ludolph,  the  poor  woman  you  have  heard  is  sick 
and  alone.  She  is  German,  and  you  can  speak  to  her  and 
comfort  her  as  only  a  woman  can." 

Christine  went  at  once,  though  with  little  confidence 
in  her  powers.  Indeed,  it  was,  perhaps,  the  first  visit  of 
charity  and  mercy  she  had  ever  made.  But  she  would 
have  done  anything  he  asked,  and  determined  to  do  her 
best.  She  helped  the  poor  creature  farther  up  from  the 
water,  and  then  taking  her  hands,  spoke  to  her  soothingly 
and  gently  in  her  native  tongue. 

"  Heaven  and  all  the  angels  bless  your  sweet  face,  for 
taking  pity  on  a  poor  lone  body,  and  so  they  will  too,"  is 
♦he  fiee  rendering  of  her  grateful  German. 

"Would  you  please  say  a  little  prayer  for  a  lone,  sick 
body?  "  she  asked  after  a  little  while. 

Christine  hesitated  a  moment,  and  then  thought.  "Why 
not  ?  if  it  will  be  of  any  comfort  to  the  poor  thing.  It  can 
do  neitlier  of  us  harm." 


CHRISTINE  A  CHRISTIAN.  443 

Kneeling  at  the  woman's  side,  Dennis  saw  her  lift  her 
white  face  to  Heaven,  and  her  lips  move.  Her  attitude 
was  unmistakably  that  of  prayer.  He  could  scarcely  be- 
lieve his  eyes. 

Her  petition  was  brief  and  characteristic  :  "  O  God — 
if  there  is  a  God, — help  this  poor  creature ! " 

Then  Dennis  saw  her  start  up  and  glance  around  in  a 
strange  bewildered  manner.  Suddenly  she  clasped  her 
hands  and  looked  up  with  an  ecstatic  thrilling  cry  : 

"There  is!  there  is!  God  lives  and  loves  me,  I  feel, 
I  know,  and  therefore  I  may  hope  and  live."  Turning  to 
the  still  raging  flames,  she  exclaimed:  "  Burn  on  with  your 
fiery  billows,  I  do  not  fear  you  now  I  I  am  safe,  safe  for- 
ever !  Oh,  how  can  I  ever  love  and  praise  Thee  enough !  " 
Then  springing  to  Dennis'  side,  she  took  both  his 
hands  in  hers,  and  said :  "  Mr.  Fleet,  you  have  saved  my 
life  again  and  again,  and  I  am,  oh,  how  grateful ;  but  in 
leading  me  to  this  knowledge  you  have  made  me  your 
debtor  for  evermore.  God  does  live,  and  I  believe  now 
He  loves  even  me." 

As  the  glare  of  the  fire  fell  on  her  face,  he  was  awed 
and  speechless  at  its  expression.  From  its  ecstatic  joy 
and  purity  it  seemed  that  the  light  of  heaven,  instead  of 
her  burning  home,  was  illumining  it. 

At  last  he  said  brokenly:  "Thank  God!  thank  God! 
my  many,  many  prayers  are  answered." 

The  look  of  love  and  gratitude  she  gave  him  will  only 
find  its  counterpart  in  heaven,  when  the  saved  beam  upon 
those  who  led  them  to  the  Saviour.  The  whole  of  her 
strong  womanly  soul,  thoroughly  aroused,  was  in  her  faqe^ 
and  it  shone  like  that  of  an  angel. 

To  Dennis,  with  the  force  of  fulfilled  prophecy,  recur- 
red his  mother's  words,  and  unconsciously  he  spoke  theni 
iloud  :  "Prayer  is  mighty." 


CHAPTER  XLVIll. 


CHRISTINE  S  GRAVE. 


After  a  moment  Christine  returned  to  her  charge 
and  said  gently : 

"  I  think  I  can  take  better  care  of  you  now." 

The  poor  woman  looked  at  her  in  a  bewildered  way, 
half  fearing  she  had  lost  her  senses.  But  there  was  that 
in  Christine's  tone  and  manner  now  that  went  like  sun- 
light and  \\«armth  to  the  heart,  and  in  broadest  German 
th^  grateful  creature  was  soon  blessing  her  again  and 
again,  and  Christine  felt  that  she  was  blessed  beyond  even 
her  wildest  dreams. 

Dennis  now  felt  that  she  must  have  food  and  rest.  She 
appeared,  in  the  ghostly  light  of  the  distant  flames,  so  pale 
and  spirit-like,  that  he  almost  feared  she  would  slip  away 
to  heaven  at  once,  and  he  commenced  looking  for  some 
one  stronger,  older  and  more  suitable  to  take  her  place. 
At  a  little  distance  farther  north,  he  at  last  found  a  stout 
German  woman  sitting  with  her  two  children  on  a  large 
feather  bed,  the  sole  relic  of  her  household  goods.  Dennis 
aciuainted  her  with  the  case  and  she  soon  took  the  matter 
out  of  his  and  Christine's  hands  in  a  very  satisfactory  way. 

South  ard  west  opportunity  of  escape  was  utterly  cut 
oiT;  eastward  were  the  waters  of  the  lake,  so  that  .heir 
only  chance  was  to  push  northward.  After  making  their 
way  slowly  for  a  short  distance  among  the  thickly  scatternl 


CHRISTINE'S  GRAVE.  445 

groups  and  varied  articles  that  had  ^een  dragged  to   the 
shore  for  safety,  Dennis  thought  he  heard  a  familiar  voice. 

"  Dr.  Arten,"  he  cried. 

"  Hallo  !  who  wants  me  :  "  answered  the  good  old  phy- 
sician, bustling  up  in  rather  incongruous  costume,  con- 
sisting of  a  dress  coat,  white  vest,  red  flannel  drawers,  and 
a  very  soiled  pair  of  slippers. 

"  Oh,  Doctor,  the  very  sight  of  you  inspires  hope  and 
courage." 

"  Surely  a  young  fellow  like  you  can  be  in  no  want  of 
those  articles  ? " 

"  If  he  is  lacking,"  cried  Christine,  "  it  must  be  for  the 
reason  that  he  has  given  hope  and  courage  to  every  one 
he  has  met,  and  so  has  robbed  himself." 

"  Heigho  !  "  exclaimed  the  Doctor,  "  you  here  ?  " 

"  Yes,  thanks  to  the  heroism  of  Mr.  Fleet." 

"Fleet,  is  that  all  you  have  •  saved  from  the  fire?" 
asked  the  Doctor,  with  a  humorous  twinkle,' pointing  to 
Christine. 

'*  I  am  well  satisfied,"  said  Dennis  quietly  but  with 
rising  color. 

"  I  should  have  perished,  had  not  Mr.  Fleet  come  to 
my  rescue,"  continued  Christine  warmly,  glad  of  an  oppor- 
tunity to  express  a  little  of  her  gratitude. 

The  Doctor  turned  his  genial  humorous  eye  on  her  and 
said :  "  Don't  be  too  grateful.  Miss  Ludolph ;  he  is  a  young 
man  and  only  did  his  duty.  Now  if  I  had  been  so  for- 
tunate you  might  have  been  as  grateful  as  you  pleased." 

It  was  Christine's  turn  to  grow  rather  rosier  than  even 
the  red  fire  warranted,  but  she  said  : 

"You  would  have  your  joke,  Doctor,  if  the  world  were 
burning  up." 

"  Yes,  and  after  it  burned  up,"  he  replied.  "What  do 
you  think  of  that,  Miss  Ludolph,  with  your  German 
skepticism  ? " 


446  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

Tears  came  in  Christine's  eyes  and  she  said  in  a  low 
tone : 

"  I  am  glad  to  say  that-I  have  lost  my  German  skepti- 
cism in  the  fire  also." 

'  What !  "  cried  the  Doctor,  seizing  both  her  hands  in 
his  hearty  way.  "  Will  you  accept  of  our  Christian  super- 
stition ? " 

"  I  think  I  have  accepted  your  glorious  Christian  truth, 
and  the  thought  makes  me  very  happy." 

"  Well,  now,  I  can  almost  say,  Pfaise  God  for  the  fire, 
though  old  Dr.  Arten  must  commence  again  where  the 
youngsters  are  who  kick  up  their  heels  in  their  office  all 
day." 

With  professional  instinct  he  slipped  his  finger  on 
Christine's  pulse,  then  rumaged  in  his  pocket  and  soon 
drew  out  some  powders,  and  in  his  brusque  way  made  her 
take  one. 

"  Oh,  how  bitter ! "  she  exclaimed. 

"  That  is  the  way  the  ladies  treat  me,"  began  the  merry 
bachelor  :  "not  an  ounce  of  gratitude  when  I  save  their 
lives.  But  let  a  young  fellow  like  Fleet  come  along  and 
get  them  out  of  danger  by  mere  brute  strength  instead  of 
my  delicate  skilful  way,  and  language  breaks  down  with 
their  thanks.  Very  well,  I  shall  have  compensation — I 
shall  present  my  bill  before  long.  And  now,  young  man, 
since  you  have  set  out  to  rescue  the  young  lady,  you  had 
better  carry  the  matter  through,  for  several  reasons  which 
I  need  not  urge.  Your  best  chance  is  to  make  your  way 
northward,  and  then  get  around  to  the  west  where  you  can 
get  food  and  shelter."  And  with  a  hearty  grasp  of  the 
hand,  the  brave  genial  old  man  wished  them  "  God  speed  !  " 

Dennis  told  him  of  the  poor  German  woman,  and  then 
pushed  on  in  the  direction  indicated.  But  Christine  was 
growing-  weak  and  exhausted.     At  last  they  reached  the 


CHRISTINE'S  GRAVE.  447 

Catholic  cemetery.  It  was  crowded  with  fugitives,  and  the 
fire  to  the  northwest  yet  cut  off  all  escape,  even  if  Chris- 
tine's strength  had  permitted  further  exertion.  It  was  now 
approaching  midnight,  and  she  said  wearily: 

"  Mr.  Fleet,  I  am  very  sorry,  but  I  fear  I  cannot  take 
another  step.  The  powder  Dr.  Arten  gave  me,  strength- 
ened me  for  a  time,  but  its  effect  is  passing  away,  and  I 
feel  almost  paralyzed  with  fatigue.  I  am  not  afraid  to  stay 
here,  or  indeed  anywhere  now." 

"  It  seems  a  very  hard  necessity  that  you  should  have 
to  remain  in  such  a  place,  Miss  Ludolph,  but  I  see  no  help 
for  it.  We  are  certainly  as  well  off  as  thousands  of  others, 
and  SQ  I  suppose  ought  not  to  complain."' 

"  I  feel  as  if  I  could  never  complain  again,  Mr.  Fleet. 
I  only  hope  my  father  is  as  safe  and  as  well  as  we  are.  I 
cannot  tell  you  how  my  heart  goes  out  toward  him  now 
that  I  see  everything  in  a  different  light.  I  have  not  been 
a  true  daughter,  and  I  do  long  to  make  amends.  He 
surely  has  escaped,  don't  you  think  ?  " 

"  Mr.  Ludolph  was  possessed  of  unusual  sagacity  and 
prudence,"  said  Dennis  evasively.  "  What  any  man  could 
do,  he  could.  And  now,  Miss  Ludolph,  I  will  try  to  find 
you  a  resting-place.  There  are  such  crowds  here  that  1 
think  we  had  better  go  nearer  that  side,  where  early  in  the 
evening  the  fire  drove  people  away." 

The  cemeter)'  had  not  been  used  of  late  years,  and  many 
of  the  bodies  had  been  removed.  This  caused  excavations 
here  and  there,  and  one  of  these  from  which  the  gathered 
leaves  and  grass  had  been  burned,  Dennis  thought  might 
answer  for  Christine's  couch,  as  in  the  hollow  of  this  vacant 
and  nearly  filled  grave  she  would  be  quite  sheltered  from 
the  wind,  and  the  sand  was  still  warm  from  the  effects  of 
the  fire.     To  his. surprise  she  made  no  objection. 

"  I  am  so  weary  that  I  can  rest  anywhere,"  she  said, 
*'and  a  grave  is  not  to  me  what  it  was  once." 


448  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

He  arranged  her  shawl  so  that  it  might  be  both  mat 
tress,  pillow  and  covering,  and  wrapped  her  up. 

'  And  how  will  you  endure  the  long  cold  hours,  my 
friend  ? "  she  asked,  looking  up  most  sympathetically. 

"  Thanks  to  your  kindness,  I  had  such  a  good  sleep 
this  afternoon  that  I  feel  strong  and  rested,"  he  replied 
with  a  smile. 

"  I  fear  you  say  so  to  put  my  mind  at  rest,"  but  even 
as  she  spoke  her  eyes  closed  and  she  went  to  sleep  like  a 
tired  and  trusting  child.  As  with  Dennis  a  few  hours  be- 
fore, the  limit  of  nature's  endurance  had  been  reached,  and 
the  wealthy,  high-born,  Miss  Ludolph,  who  on  Sabbath 
night  had  slept  in  the  midst  of  artistic  elegance  and  luxury, 
now,  on  Monday  night,  rested  in  a  vacant  grave  under  the 
open  and  storm-gathering  sky.  Soon  (to  be  accurate),  at 
two  o'clock  on  the  morning  of  Tuesday,  rain  began  to  fall. 
But  with  all  the  discomfort  it  brought,  never  was  it  more 
welcome. 

Christine  shivered  in  her  sleep,  and  Dennis  looked 
around  vainly  for  some  additional  covering.  The  throng- 
ing fugitives  were  all  in  a  similar  plight,  and  their  only 
course  was  simply  to  endure  till  some  path  of  escape 
opened. 

The  night  was  indeed  a  long  one  to  him  ;  at  first  ex- 
citement and  happiness  kept  him  awake  and  unconscious 
of  time  and  discomfort.  But  he  soon  felt  how  weary  and 
hungry  he  was,  for  he  had  eaten  nothing  since  his  slight 
supper  on  Sabbath  evening.  The  heat  of  the  fire  percep 
tibly  lessened  as  the  rain  commenced  falling,  and  without 
his  coat  Dennis  was  soon  chilled  to  the  bone.  On  every 
side  he  heard  moans  of  discomfort,  and  he  knew  that  he 
had  far  more  reason  to  endure  patiently  than  many  near 
him.  He  tried  to  keep  himself  warm  by  walking  around, 
but  at  last  he  grew  too  weary  for  that,  and  sat,  a  patient 


CHRISTINE'S  GRAVE.  ^^^ 

cowering  watcher,  at  the  head  of  Christine's  weird  couch, 
listening  sadly  betimes  to  the  pitiful  crying  of  little  chil- 
dren, and  the  sighs  and  groans  of  older  sufferers. 

At  last  the  light  of  welcome  day  streaked  the  eastern 
horizon,  and  Christine  opened  her  eyes  in  a  bewildered 
way,  but  on  seeing  him  swaying  backward  and  forward 
with  half-closed  eyes,  sprang  up  and  said  : 

"  And  have  you  sat  and  watched  there  all  the  long 
night?" 

"  I  hope  you  feel  rested  and  better,  Miss  Ludolph,"  he 
replied,  startled  by  her  voice  from  drowsiness. 

"  It  has  been  raining,  too.  I  fear  you  are  wet  through. 
Oh,  how  much  you  must  have  suffered  on  my  account" 

"  I  imagine  you  are  as  wet  as  I  am.  Miss  Ludolpn. 
This  has  been  a  very  democratic  experience  for  you.  We 
are  all  about  alike  in  this  strange  camping-ground." 

"  No,  your  kindness  made  me  quite  comfortable.  In- 
deed, I  never  slept  better.  And  you,  without  any  coat  or 
shelter,  have  watched  patiently  hour  after  hour." 

"  Well,  you  did  as  much  for  me  yesterday  afternoon,  so 
we  are  quits." 

"  I  think  there  is  a  great  difference,"  she  said.  "  And 
remember  what  a  watcher  I  made ;  I  let  those  drunken 
creatures  run  over  you."  • 

"  I  don't  see  how  you  could  have  helped  it,"  said  he 
laughing.  "That  you  should  have  cared  for  me  as  you 
did,  was  a  favor  that  I  never  expected,"  he  added,  blushing. 

She  blushed  too,  but  made  no  reply,  at  the  same  time 
she  was  vexed  with  herself  that  she  did  not.  Dennis,  with 
a  lover's  blindness,  misunderstood  her  silence,  and  thought 
that,  as  a  friend,  she  was  more  grateful  than  he  could  wish, 
but  he  must  speak  in  no  other  light. 

Then  he  remembered  that  it  would  be  dishonorable  to 
urge  his  suit  under  the   circumstances  ;  it   would  be   a 


45° 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


source  of  inexpressible  pain  to  her,  with  her  deep  sense 
of  obligation,  to  put  aside  expressions  of  his  deeper  regard, 
and  he  resolved  to  avoid  if  possible  any  manifestations  of 
his  feelings.  While  she  was  dependent  upon  him  he  would 
ti"eat  her  as  a  brother  might,  and  if  his  human  love  could 
never  find  its  consummation,  he  would  bear  his  loss  as 
patiently  as  possible.  But  in  spite  of  himself  a  tinge  of 
sadness  and  restraint  came  into  his  manner,  and  Christine 
sighed  to  herself: 

"li  he  only  knew,  and  /  only  knew,  just  the  truth,  how 
much  happier  we  might  be." 

There  was  a  general  movement  now  among  the 
strangely  assorted  multitude.  The  fire  had  swept  every- 
thing away  so  completely  on  the  north  side  that  there 
were  no  hot  blazing  ruins  to  prevent  crossing.  Accord- 
ingly men  came  pouring  over,  looking  for  their  families. 
On  every  side  were  cries  of  joy  on  recognition  of  those 
whom  fear  and  terrible  forebodings  had  buried  under  the 
blackened  remains  of  once  happy  homes.  But  mingled 
with  exclamations  of  joy  were  sobs  and  wails  of  anguish, 
as  some  now  realized  in  the  lapsing  hours  that  absent 
members  of  the  household  were  lost. 

Christine  looked  in  vain  for  her  father ;  at  last  Dennis 
said  ; 

"  Miss  Ludolph,  do  you  feel  equal  to  the  effort  of  cross- 
ing to  the  west  side  ?  you  must  be  faint  with  hunger,  and 
there  only  can  we  hope  for  help." 

"  Oh,  yes,  let  us  go  at  once,  for  your  sake  as  well  as 
mine,"  for  she  saw  that  his  long  fasting  and  great  fatigue 
had  made  him  very  haggard. 

They  urged  their  way  across  the  burned  district  as  fast 
as  their  exhausted  state  would  permit,  carefully  avoiding 
burning  brands  that  still  lay  in  the  street. 

"  I  hope  you  will  have  patience  with   me  in  my  slow 


CHRISTINE'S   GRAVE.  451 

progress,"  said  Christine,  "for  I  feel  as  I  imagine  Rip  Van 
Winkle  must,  after  his  twenty  years'  nap." 

"  I  think  you  have  borne  up  heroically.  Miss  Ludolph,'* 
^aid  Dennis  warmly. 

"  Oh,  no !  I  am  not  in  the  least  heroic,  but  I  confess 
that  I  am  very  hungry.  I  never  knew  what  hunger  was 
before.  Well,  I  can  now  appreciate  what  must  often  be 
the  condition  of  the  poor,  and  hope  not  to  be  so  forgetful 
of  them  hereafter." 

"  I  am  glad  to  hear  you  say  that  you  are  hungry.  Miss 
Ludolph,  for  it  proves  that  with  care  you  will  rally  after 
this  dreadful  exposure,  and  be  your  former  self" 

"  Ah  !  Mr.  Fleet,  I  hope  I  shall  never  be  my  old  self 
again.  I  shudder  when  I  think  what  I  was  when  you 
awakened  me  that  dreadful  night." 

"  But  I  have  feared,"  said  he,  ever  avoiding  any  refer- 
ence to  his  own  ser\'ices,  "  that  though  you  might  escape 
the  fire,  the  exposure  would  be  greater  than  you  could 
endure.  I  trembled  for  you  last  night  when  it  began  to 
rain,  but  could  find  no  additional  covering." 

No  brother  could  be  kinder  or  more  thoughtful  of  me," 
she  said,  turning  upon  him  a  glad,  grateful  face. 

"  That  is  it,"  thought  Dennis.  "  She  hints  to  me  what 
must  be  our  relationship.  She  is  the  Baroness  of  Ludolph, 
and  is  pledged  to  a  future  that  I  cannot  share." 

But  as  he  saw  her  gratitude,  he  resolved  all  the  more 
resolutely  not  to  put  it  to  the  hard  test  of  refusing  his  love. 
A  little  after  he  unconsciously  sighed  wearily,  and  she 
looked  at  him  wistfully. 

"  Oh  that  I  knew  if  he  felt  toward  me  as  he  once  did," 
she  said  to  herself. 

They  now  reached  the  unscathed  streets  of  the  west 
side,  which  were  already  thronged  with  fugitives  as 
hungry  and   gaunt   as   themselves.     Mingling    with    this 


452 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


great  strange  tide  of  weak,  begrimmed,  hollow-eyed 
humanity,  they  at  last  reached  Dr.  Goodwin's  beautiful 
church.  Here  already  had  commenced  the  noble  chaiity 
dispensed  from  that  place  during  the  days  of  want  aii4 
suffering  that  followed. 


CHAPTER  XLIX. 

SUSIE    WINTHROP. 


Waiting  with  multitudes  of  others,  Christine  and  Den- 
nis at  last  received  an  army  biscuit  (hard  tack  in  the  sol- 
dier's vernacular)  and  a  tin-cup  of  what  resembled  coffee. 
To  him  it  was  very  touching  to  see  how  eagerly  she 
received  this  coarse  fare,  proving  that  she  was  indeed 
almost  famished.  Too  weak  to  stand,  they  sat  down  near 
the  door  on  the  sidewalk.  A  kind  lady  presently  came  and 
said: 

"  If  you  have  no  place  to  go  you  will  find  it  more  com- 
fortable in  the  church." 

They  gladly  availed  themselves  of  her  permission,  as 
the  thronged  street  was  anything  but  pleasant. 

"  Mr.  Fleet,"  said  Christine,  "  I  am  now  going  to  take 
csLve  of  you  in  return  for  your  care  last  night,"  and  she  led 
y-.m  up  to  a  secluded  part  of  the  church  by  the  organ, 
arranged  some  cushions  on  a  seat,  and  then  continued, 
'■  As  I  have  obeyed  you,  so  you  must  now  be  equally 
docile.  Don't  you  dare  move  from  that  place  till  I  call 
you,"  and  she  left  him. 

He  was  indeed  wearied  beyond  expression,  and  most 
grateful  for  a  chance  to  rest.     This  refuge  and  the  way  it 


SUSIE  WINTHROP. 


453 


was  secured  seemed  almost  a  heavenly  experience,  and  he 
thought  with  deepest  longing,  "  If  we  could  always  take 
care  of  each  other,  I  should  be  perhaps  too  well  satisfied 
with  this  earthly  life." 

When  after  a  little  time  Christine  returned  he  was  sleep- 
ing as  heavily  as  before  upon  the  beach,  but  the  smile  his 
last  thought  occasioned  still  rested  on  his  face.  For  some 
little  time  she  also  sat  near  and  rested,  and  her  eyes  sought 
his  face  as  if  a  story  were  written  there  she  never  could 
finish  Then  she  went  to  make  inquiries  after  her  father. 
But  no  one  tc  whom  she  spoke  knew  anything  about  him. 

Bread  and  provisions  were  constantly  arriving,  but  not 
fast  enough  to  meet  the  needs  of  famishing  thousands. 
Though  not  feeling  very  strong  she  offered  her  services, 
and  was  soon  busily  engaged.  All  present  were  strangers 
to  her,  but  when  they  learned  from  the  inquiries  for  her 
father  that  she  was  Miss  Ludolph,  she  .was  treated  with 
deference  and  sympathy.  But  she  assumed  nothing,  and 
as  her  strength  permitted,  during  the  day,  she  was  ready 
for  any  task,  even  the  humblest.  She  handed  food  around 
among  the  hungry,  eager  applicants  with  such  a  sweet  and 
pitying  face,  that  she  heard  many  a  murmured  blessing. 
Her  efforts  were  all  the  more  appreciated  as  all  saw  that 
she  too  had  passed  through  the  fire  and  had  suffered  deeply. 
At  last  a  kind  motherly  lady  said  : 

"  My  dear,  you  look  ready  to  drop.  Here,  take  this," 
and  she  poured  out  a  glass  of  wine  and  gave  her  a  sand- 
wich, "  now  go  and  find  some  quiet  nook  and  rest.  It's 
your  duty." 

"  I  have  a  friend  who  has  suffered  almost  everything  in 
•aving  me.  He  is  asleep  now,  but  he  has  had  scarcely 
anything  to  eat  for  nearly  three  days,  and  I  know  he  will  be 
very  hungry  when  he  wakes.'' 

"  Sakes  alive  !  nothing  to  eat  for  three  days  !  why  you 


454 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 


must  take  him  a  whole  loaf,  and  this,  and  this,"  cried  tha 
good  lady,  about  to  provision  Dennis  for  a  month. 

"  Oh,  no,"  said  Christine  with  a  smile,  "  so  much  would 
not  be  good  for  him.  If  you  will  give  me  three  or  foul 
sandwiches,  and  let  me  come  for  some  coffee  when  he  wakes, 
it  will  be  sufficient,"  and  she  carried  what  now  seemed 
treasures  to  where  Dennis  was  sleeping,  and  sat  down  with 
a  happy  look  on  her  face. 

The  day  had  been  full  of  sweet  trustful  thoughts.  She 
was  conscious  of  a  presence  within  her  heart  and  all  around 
that  she  knew  was  Divine,  and  in  spite  of  her  anxiety  about 
her  father,  and  the  uncertainty  of  the  future,  she  had  a  rest 
and  contentment  of  mind  that  she  had  never  experienced 
before.  Then  she  felt  such  a  genuine  sympathy  for  the 
sufferers  about  her,  and  found,  when  she  spoke  to  them 
gently  and  kindly,  they  seemed  so  grateful,  she  wondered 
she  had  never  discovered  the  joy  of  ministering  to  others 
before.  She  was  entering  a  new  world,  and  though  there 
might  be  suffering  in  it,  the  antidote  was  ever  near,  and  its 
pleasures  promised  to  grow  richer,  fuller,  more  satisfying, 
till  they  developed  into  the  perfect  happiness  of  heaven. 
But  every  Christian  joy  that  was  like  a  sweet  surprise ;  every 
thrilling  hope  that  pointed  to  endless  progress  in  all  that  is 
best  and  noblest  in  life,  instead  of  the  sudden  blank  and 
nothingness  that  threatened  but  yesterday  ;  and  chief  of 
all,  the  thrilling  consciousness  of  the  Divine  love  which 
kept  her  murmuring,  "  My  Saviour,  my  good,  kind  Heaven- 
ly Father,"  all  reminded  her  of  him  who  had  been  instru- 
mental of  the  wondrous  change.  Often  during  the  day  she 
would  go  and  look  at  him,  and  could  Dennis  only  have 
opened  his  eyes  at  such  a  moment,  and  caught  her  expres- 
sion, no  words  would  have  been  needed  to  assure  him  of 
his  happiness. 

The  low  afternoon  sun  shone  in  gold  and  crimson   on 


SUSIE  WINTHROP.  4^5 

his  brow  and  face  tJirough  the  stained  windows  before  he 
gave  signs  of  waking,  and  then  she  hurried  away  to  get  the 
coffee  hot  from  the  u''n. 

She  had  hardly  gone  before  he  arose  greatly  refreshed 
and  s  lengthened,  but  so  famished  that  a  roast  ox  would 
have  seemed  but  a  comfortable  meal.  His  eye  at  once 
caught  the  sandwiches  placed  temptingly  near. 

"  That  is  Miss  Ludolph's  work,"  he  said  ;  "  I  wonder  if 
she  has  saved  any  for  herself"  He  was  about  to  go  and 
seek  her  when  she  met  him  with  the  coffee. 

"  Go  back,"  she  said ;  "  how  dare  you  disobey  orders  ? " 

"  I  was  coming  to  find  you." 

"  Well,  that  is  the  best  excuse  you  could  have  made, 
but  I  am  here ;  so  sit  down  and  drink  this  coffee  and 
devour  these  sandwiches." 

"  Not  unless  you  share  them  with  me." 

"  Insubordinate  !  See  here,"  and  she  took  out  her 
more  dainty  provision  from  behind  a  seat  and  sat  down 
opposite,  in  such  a  pretty  companionable  way  that  he  in 
his  admiration  and  pleasure  forgot  his  sandwiches. 

"  What  is  the  matter  ? "  she  asked.  "  You  are  to  eat 
tiie  sandwiches,  not  me." 

"  A  very  proper  hint,  Miss  Ludolph;  one  might  well 
be  inclined  to  make  the  mistake." 

"  Now  that  is  a  compliment  worthy  of  the  king  of  the 
Cannibal  Islands." 

"  Miss  Ludolph,"  said  Dennis,  looking  at  her  earn- 
estly, "you  do  indeed  seem  happy." 

A  ray  of  light  slanting  through  a  yellow  diamond  of 
glass  fell  with  a  sudden  glory  upon  her  face,  and  in  a  tone 
of  almost  ecstasy  she  said : 

"  Oh,  I  am  so  glad  and  grateful,  when  I  realize  what 
might  have  been,  and  what  is.  It  seems  that  I  have  lost 
so  little  in  this  fire  in  comparison  with  what  I  Vave  gained. 


456  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

And  but  for  you  I  might  have  lost  everything.  How  rich 
this  first  day  of  life,  real,  true  life,  has  heen  !  My  Heavenly 
Father  has  been  so  kind  to  me  1  cannot  express  it.  And 
then  to  think  how  I  have  wronged  Him  all  these  years." 

"  You  have  indeed  learned  the  secret  of  true  eternal 
happiness,  Miss  Ludolph." 

"  I  believe  it — I  feel  sure  of  it.  All  trouble,  all  pain 
will  one  day  pass  away  forever ;  and  sometimes  I  feel  as  if 
I  must  sing  for  joy.  I  do  so  long  to  see  my  father  and  tell 
him.  I  fear  he  won't  believe  it  at  first,  but  I  can  pray  as 
you  did,  and  it  seems  as  if  my  Saviour  would  not  deny  me 
anything.  And  now,  Mr.  Fleet,  when  you  have  finished 
your  lunch,  I  am  going  to  ask  one  more  favor,  and  then 
will  dub  you  truest  knight  that  ever  served  defenceless 
■woman.  You  will  find  my  father  for  me,  for  I  believe  you 
can  do  anything." 

Even  in,  the  shadow  where  he  sat,  she  caught  the 
pained  expression  of  his  face. 

She  sprang  up  and  grasped  his  arm. 

"  You  know  something,"  she  said ;  then  added :  "  Do 
not  be  afraid  to  find  my  father  now.  When  he  knows 
what  services  you  have  rendered  me,  all  estrangement,  if 
any  existed,  will  pass  away." 

But  he  averted  his  face,  and  she  saw  tears  gathering  in 
his  eyes. 

"  Mr,  Fleet,"  she  gasped,  *'  do  you  know  anything  I  do 
not?" 

He  could  hide  the  truth  no  longer.  Indeed  it  was  time 
she  should  learn  it. 

Turning  and  taking  her  trembling  hand,  he  looked  at 
fcer  so  sadly  and  kindly,  that  she  at  once  knew  her  father 
Was  dead. 

"  Oh,  my  father,"  she  cried  in  a  tone  of  anguish  that  he 
could    never  forget,  "you  will  never,  never   know.      All 


SUSIE  WINTHROP.  45^ 

day  I  have  been  longing  to  prove  to  you  the  truth  of  Chris- 
tianity by  my  loving  patient  tenderness,  but  you  have  died, 
and  will  never  know,"  she  moaned  shudderingly. 

He  still  held  her  hand — indeed  she  clung  to  it  as 
something  that  might  help  sustain  her  in  the  dark,  bitter 
hour. 

"  Poor,  poor  father !  "  she  cried,  "  I  never  treated  him 
as  I  ought,  and  now  he  will  never  know  the  wealth  of  love 
I  was  hoping  to  lavish  on  him."  Then  looking  at  Dennis 
almost  reproachfully,  she  said,  "  Could  you  not  save  him  ? 
You  saved  so  many  others." 

"  Indeed  I  could  not.  Miss  Ludolph ;  I  tried,  and  nearly 
lost  my  life  in  the  effort.  The  great  hotel  back  of  the  store 
fell  and  crushed  all  in  a  moment." 

She  shuddered,  but  at  last  whispered : 

"  Why  have  you  kept  this  so  long  from  me  ?  " 

"  How  could  I  tell  you  when  the  blow  would  have  been 
death  ?  Even  now  you  can  scarcely  bear  it." 

"  My  little  beginning  of  faith  is  sorely  tried.  Heavenly 
spirit,"  she  cried,  "guide  me  through  this  darkness,  and 
let  not  doubt  and  unbelief  cloud  my  mind  again." 

"  Amen,"  said  Dennis  in  a  deep  low  tone. 

They  sat  in  the  twilight  in  silence.  He  still  held  her 
hand,  and  she  was  sobbing  more  gently  and  quietly.  Sud- 
denly she  asked : 

"  Is  it  wrong  thus  to  grieve  over  the  breaking  of  an 
earthly  tie  ?  " 

"  No,  not  if  you  will  say  as  did  your  Lord  in  His  agony: 
"  '  Oh,  my  Father,  Thy  will  be  done. '  " 

"  I  will  try,"  she  said  softly,  "  but  it  is  hard." 

"  He  is  a  merciful  and  faithful  High  Priest.  For  in 
that  He  himself  suffered,  being  tempted,  He  is  able  to  succor 
them  that  are  tempted." 

"  Do  you  know  that  I  think  mv  chan-c  in  feeling  makes 


458  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

me  grieve  all  the  more  deeply.  Until  to-day  I  never  lovbd 
my  father  as  I  ought.  It  is  the  curse  of  unbelief  to  deaden 
everything  good  in  the  heart.  Oh,  I  do  feel  such  a  great 
unspeakable  pity  for  him." 

"Like  as  a  father  pitieth  his  children,  so  the  Lord 
pitieth  them  that  fear  Him  :" 

"  Is  that  in  the  Bible  ? "  she  asked. 

"Yes." 

"  It  is  very  sweet.  He  indeed  must  be  my  refuge  now, 
for  I  am  alone  in  the  world." 

"  He  has  said,  '  I  will  never  leave  thee  nor  forsake 
thee.'  I  have  passed  through  this  sorrow  so  recently  my- 
self that  I  can  sympathize  with  you  as  a  fellow-sufferer." 

"True,  true,  so  you  have,"  she  answered.  "Is  that 
the  reason  that  Christ  suffered  with  us  that  we  might  know 
He  sympathized  with  us  ? " 

"  Yes." 

"  How  unspeakably  comforting  is  such  sympathy,  both 
human  and  divine.     Tell  me  about  your  mother." 

"  I  fear  I  cannot  without  being  unmanned.'  She  was 
one  of  heaven's  favorites,  and  I  owe  everything  to  her.  I 
can  tell  you  one  thing  though,  she  prayed  for  you  con- 
tinually— even  with  her  dying  lips,  when  my  faith  had 
broken  down." 

This  touched  Christine  very  deeply.  At  last  she  said : 
"I  shall  see  her  some  day." 

"  I  wish  you  had  seen  her,"  he  continued  very  sadly, 
looking  as  if  at  a  scene  far  away. 

"  You  cannot  wish  it  more  than  I.  Indeed  I  would 
have  called  on  her,  had  it  not  been  for  an  unfortunate 
accideit." 

He  looked  at  her  with  some  surprise  as  if  not  under- 
standing her  remark,  but  said: 

"She  greatly  wished  to  see  you  before  she  died," 


SUSIE  WINTHROP.  ^j^ 

*'0h,  I  wish  I  had  known  it." 

"  Did  you  not  know  it? "  he  asked  in  a  startled  manner 

"  No,  but  I  felt  grateful  to  her,  for  I  understood  tho: 
she  offered  to  take  care  of  me  in  case  I  had  the  small-pox' 
I  wanted  to  visit  her  very  much,  and  at  last  thought   I  f =^ 

would  venture  to  do  so,  but  just  then  I  sprained  my  ankle. 
I  sent  my  maid  to  inquire,  but  fear  she  didn't  do  my 
errand  very  well,"  added  Christine,  looking  down. 

"She  never  came.  Miss  Ludolph."  Then  he  con- 
tinued eagerly :  "  I  fear  J  have  done  you  a  great  wrong. 
A  little  time  before  my  mother  died,  she  wrote  you  a  line 
saying  that  she  was  dying  and  would  like  to  see  you.  I 
did  not  know  you  could  not  come — I  thought  you  would 
not." 

Crimson  with  shame  and  humiliation,  Christine  buried 
her  burning  cheeks  in  her  hands  and  murmured,  "  I  never 
received  it." 

"  And  did  you  send  the  exquisite  flowers  and  fruit  ? "  he 
asked.  "  Ah,  I  see  that  you  did.  I  am  so  glad — so  very 
glad  that  1  was  mistaken.  I  sincerely  ask  your  pardon 
for  my  unjust  thoughts." 

"  It  is  I  who  should  ask  pardon,  and  for  a  long  time  I 
have  earnestly  wished  that  I  might  find  opportunity  to  do 
so.  My  conduct  has  been  simply  monstrous,  but  of  late 
it  has  seemed  worse  than  the  truth.  Everything  has  been 
against  me.  If  you  only  knew — but — "  (and  her  head 
bowed  lower.)  Then  she  added  hastily:  "My  maid  has 
been  false,  and  I  must  have  appeared  more  heartless  than 
ever."  But,  with  bitter  shame  and  sorrow,  she.  remem- 
bered who  must  have  been  the  inspirer  of  the  treachery, 
and  though  she  never  spoke  of  it  again,  she  feared  that 
Dennis  suspected  it  also.  It  was  one  of  those  painful 
things  that  must  be  buried,  even  as  the  grave  closes  over 
the  frail  perishing  body. 


46o  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

Let  those  who  are  tempted  to  a  wicked,  dishonorable 
deed  remember  that  even  after  they  are  gone,  the  knowl- 
edge of  it  may  come  to  those  who  loved  them,  like  an 
incurable  wound. 

Dennis'  resolution  not  to  speak  till  Christine  should 
be  no  longer  dependent  on  him  was  fast  melting  away,  as 
he  learned  that  she  had  not  been  so  callous  and  forgetful 
as  she  seemed.  But  before  he  could  add  another  word, 
a  wild,  sweet,  mournful  voice  was  heard  singing : 

O  fiery  storm,  wilt  never  cease  ? 

Thy  burning  hail  falls  on  my  heart ; 
Bury  me  deep,  that  I  in  peace 

May  rest  where  death  no  more  can  part. 

In  awed,  startled  tones  they  both  exclaimed  :  "  SusiB 
WiNTHROP 1 " 


CHAPTER  L. 

DR.  ARTKN  STRUCK   BY   LIGHTNING. 

Hastening  down  into  the  body  of  the  church,  Dennis 
and  Christine  found  Mrs.  Learned  lying  on  some  cushions 
in  a  pew.  She  was  scantily  clad,  her  sweet  face  scorched 
and  blackened,  and  her  beautiful  hair  almost  crisped  away. 

Her  husband  was  bending  over  her  in  an  agony  of 
mingled  grief  and  joy.  She  had  just  been  brought  in  from 
wandering  aimlessly  and  alone  quite  out  upon  the  prairie, 
silking,  in  a  low  plaintive  way  to  herself,  words  suggested 
by  the  sudden  disaster  that  had  temporarily  robbed  her  of 
husband,  reason,  and  almost  of  life. 

Dennis  afterward  learned  from  Professor  Learned   that 


DR.  ARTEN  STRUCK  BY  LIGHTNING.  461 

when  first  aroused  they  had  escaped  from  the  hotel,  but,  not 
realizing  the  danger,  he  had  stepped  back  a  moment  at  her 
request  to  get  something  she  valued  very  m'uch,  and  they 
became  separated. 

"  And  thus  at  last  I  find  the  poor  child,"  he  cried  >nith 
a  look  of  agony. 

Mrs.  Learned  did  not  know  any  of  them,  but  continued 
her  low  plaintive  singing. 

Dr.  Arten,  who  had  found  his  way  to  the  church  as  one 
of  the  centres,  was  soon  in  attendance,  his  benevolent  face 
becoming  the  very  embodiment  of  pity.  The  crowd  were 
pushed  back,  and  Christine  and  other  kind  ladies  took 
charge  of  her  poor  unconscious  friend,  and  all  was  done 
that  skill  and  tender  love  could  suggest.  At  last,  under 
the  doctor's  opiates,  her  low  weird  singing  ceased,  and 
she  slept,  her  husband  holding  her  hand.  The  thronging 
fugitives  were  kept  a  little  away,  and  Dr.  Arten  slept 
near,  to  be  within  call. 

A  lady  asked  Christine  to  go  home  with  her,  but  she 
thanked  her  and  said  : 

"  No,  I  would  rather  remain  in  the  church  near  my 
friends." 

Dennis  saw  that  she  was  greatly  wearied.  Taking  her 
hand,  he  said  : 

"  Miss  Ludolph,  it  is  ray  turn  to  take  care  of  you  again. 
See,  our  friends  are  preparing  a  place  there  for  the  ladies 
to  sleep.  Please  go  to  rest  at  once,  for  you  do  indeed 
need  it." 

"  I  am  very  tired,  but  I  know  I  could  not  sleep.  How 
strange  this  life  is  !  All  day,  the  worid,  in  spite  of  what 
has  happened,  seemed  growing  brighter.  Now  with  the 
night  has  come  the  deeper  darkness  of  sorrow.  On  every 
side  pain  and  suffering  seem  to  predominate,  and  to  me 
there   will  ever  be  so  much  mystery  in  events   like   my 


462  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

father's  death  and  my  friend  Susie's  experience,  that  I 
know  it  will  be  hard  to  maintain  a  child-like  faith." 

"  God  will  help  you  to  trust ;  you  will  not  be  left  to 
struggle  alone.  Then  remember  you  are  His  child,  and 
earthly  parents  do  much  that  little  children  cannot  under- 
stand." 

With  a  faint  smile  she  answered,  "  I  fear  I  shall  be  one 
of  those  troublesome  children  that  are  ever  asking  why  ? 
All  day  it  has  seemed  so  easy  to  be  a  Christian,  but  already 
I  learn  that  there  will  be  times  when  I  shall  have  to  cling 
to  my  Saviour,  instead  of  being  carried  forward  in  His  arms. 
Indeed,  I  almost  fear  that  I  shall  lose  Him  in  the  dark- 
ness." 

"But  He  will  not  lose  you,"  replied  Dennis.  "Since 
you  are  not  sleepy,  let  me  tell  you  a  short  Bible  story." 

"  Oh  do,  please  do,  just  as  if  I  were  a  little  child." 

"  It  is  in  the  New  Testament.  Jesus  has  sent  His  dis- 
ciples in  a  boat  across  the  sea  of  Galilee,  while  He  went 
up  alone  in  a  mountain  to  pray.  The  night  came,  and 
with  it  a  storm  swept  •  down  against  the  disciples.  The 
smooth  sea  was  lashed  into  great  foam-crested  waves 
which  broke  over  the  little  ship  in  which  were  the  disci- 
ples. They  tugged  hour  after  hour  at  the  oars,  but  in 
vain.  The  night  grew  darker,  the  wind  more  contrary, 
the  waves  higher  and  more  threatening,  their  arms  wearied, 
and  they  may  have  feared  they  would  perish  alone,  and 
without  remedy  in  the  black  midnight.  But  we  read  that 
'  He  saw  them  toiling  in  rowing,'  though  they  knew  it 
not.  From  the  distant  mountain  side  '  He  saw  them' — 
marked  every  weary  stroke  of  the  oar,  and  every  throb  of 
fear.  But  at  last,  when  they  were  most  ready  to  welcome 
Him,  when  none  could  say,  '  We  would  have  rowed  through 
the  storm  alone,'  He  came  to  them  walking  safely  on  the 
dark  waves  that  threatened  them  with  death,  and  said,  '  Be 


DR.  ARTEN  STRUCK  BY  LIGHTNING.  463 

of  good  cheer,  it  is  I ;  be  not  afraid.'  Then  they  gladly 
received  Him  into  the  ship,  and  immediately  the  rough 
waves  were  hushed,  and  the  keel  of  the  boat.grated  on  the 
beach,  toward  which  they  had  vainly  rowed.  Thf  t,  they 
that  were  in  the  ship  came  and  worshipped  Him,  saying 
*  Of  a  truth  thou  art  the  Son  of  God.' 

"  Now  it  was  on  the  evening  of  that  very  night  that  these 
same  disciples  had  engaged  in  a  scene  of  festivity.  They 
had  stood  in  the  sunset  on  the  mountain  slope,  and  seen 
their  Lord  feed  many  thousand.  Then  all  was  peace, 
safety,  and  good  cheer.  Life  changed  as  quickly  for  them 
as  you,  but  did  not  their  Divine  Master  see  them  as  truly 
in  the  stormy  night  as  in  the  sunlight  ?  Did  He  leave  them 
to  perish  ? 

"  He  is  watching  you,  Miss  Ludolph,  for  He  is  ever  the 
same ;  and  before  this  stormy  night  of  your  sorrow  passes 
away,  you  will  hear  His  voice,  saying,  '  Be  of  good  cheer,  it 
is  I ;  be  not  afraid.'  " 

"  Already  I  hear  it,"  she  said  in  a  low  glad  voice,  smil- 
ing through  her  tears.  "  I  can,  I  do  trust  Him,  and  the  con- 
flicting winds  of  doubt  and  fear  are  becoming  still.  Among 
all  these  homeless  people  there  must  be  many  sad  discour- 
aged hearts.  You  have  helped  me  so  much  ;  can  you  not 
say  a  word  or  sing  something  that  will  help  them  ?" 

Dennis  thought  a  moment  and  then  in  a  sweet,  clear 
voice  that  penetrated  every  part  of  the  large  building,  sang  : 

Father  in  Heaven,  the  night  is  around  us. 

Terror  and  danger  our  portion  have  been  ; 
We  cry  unto  thee,  oh,  save  and  defend  us. 

Comfort  the  trembling  and  pardon  our  sin. 

Hearts  that  are  heavy  look  X)nward  and  upvtfaid  ; 

Though  wild  was  the  storm  that  wrecked  your  loved  homc^ 
Faith  lifts  your  sad  glances  hopefully  heavenward, 

The  mansions  prepared  with  gloiy-crowned  domes. 


464  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

Hearts  that  are  breaking,  whose  Icv'd  ones  have  vanished. 

Swept  down  in  the  seething  ocean  of  fire. 
E'en  now  they  may  rest  where  pain  is  all  banished. 

And  join  their  glad  songs  with  the  heavenly  choir. 

Hearts  that  are  groaning  with  life's  weary  burden, 

Who  fear  to  go  forward — to  sorrow  a  prey  ; 
Jesus  invites  you — '  Oh,  come,  heavy  laden  ; ' 

Leave  sin  at  his  feet,  bear  mercy  away. 

After  the  first  line  there  was  a  breathless  hush,  but 
when  he  closed,  low  sobbings  might  be  heard  from  many 
of  the  women,  and  in  the  dim  light  not  a  few  tears  shone 
in  the  eyes  of  manhood.  Dennis'  voice  was  sympathetic 
in  its  character,  and  he  had  the  power  of  throwing  into  it 
much  feeling. 

Christine  was  weeping  silently  and  quietly,  but  her  tears 
now  were  like  the  warm  spring  rain  as  it  falls  on  the  pre- 
cious seed.     At  last  she  said  : 

"You  have  done  these  people  much  good." 

"  To  you  belongs  all  the  credit,  for  it  was  at  your  sug- 
gestion I  sang." 

She  shook  her  head,  and  then  said :  "  Good-night, 
my  friend,  I  shall  never  forget  this  day  with  its  mingled 
experience ;  but  I  think,  I  hope,  I  shall  never  doubt  God 
again,"  and  she  went  to  her  rest. 

The  light  of  the  next  day  brought  to  view  many  hard 
realities,  and  chief  among  these  was  the  bread  question. 
Dennis  was  up  with  the  dawn,  and  by  eager  inquiries 
sought  to  comprehend  the  situation  somewhat.  Some 
were  gloomy  and  discouraged,  some  apathetic,  and  some 
determined,  courageous,  and  hopeful :  and  to  this  last  cla.ss 
he  belonged. 

Most  thankful  that  he  had  come  out  of  the  fiery  ordeal 
unscathed,  he  resolved  to  contribute  his  quota  towards  a 
new  and  better  Chicago.     Young,  and  sanguine  in  temper  ■ 


DR.  ARTEN  STRUCK  BY  LIGHTNING.  465 

ament,  he  already  saw  the  city  rise  from  its  ashes  in 
statelier  proportions  and  richer  prosperity.  With  a  thrill 
of  exultation  he  heard  the  report  that  some  Napoleonic 
business-men  had  already  telegraphed  for  building  male- 
rial,  and  were  even  now  excavating  the  hot  ruins. 

Christine  had  hardly  joined  him  as  he  stood  at  the 
door,  when  a  gentleman  entered  and  asked : 

"  Who  here  are  willing  and  able  to  work  fof  fair 
wages  ? " 

"  I  am  at  your  service,"  said  Dennis,  stepping  forward 
promptly. 

"You  are  a  gentleman,   sir,"   said   the   speaker,  im- 
pressed with  the  fact  by  Dennis'  bearing,  though  his  hat 
and  coat  were  gone ;  "  I  need  laborers  who  can  handle  the, 
pick  and  shovel." 

"  I  will  work  for  less,  then,  till  I  can  handle  these 
tools  as  well  as  a  laborer.  There  is  lio  reason  why  I 
should  eat  the  bread  of  charity  a  day  longer,  especially 
when  so  many  need  it  more  than  I." 

"  I  said  you  were  a  gentleman ;  I  now  say  you  are  a 
man,  and  that  to  me  means  a  great  deal  more,"  said  the 
energetic  stranger.  "You  shall  have  two  dollars  a  day 
with  the  rest." 

He  turned  to  Christine  and  said  almost  proudly: 
"The  supper  you  have  to-night  shall  be  yours  also." 

"  That  is,"  she  replied  with  a  smile,  "  I  shall  live  on 
your  charity  instead  of  that  of  some  one  else." 

His  face  grew  sad  at  once,  but  he  answered,  as  he 
went  away :    "  I  could  not  give  you  charit]^  Miss  Ludolph." 

Christine  saw  that  she  had  pained  him,  and  was  much 
vexed  with  herself.  But  his  remark  added  to  the  hope 
and  almost  belief  that  she  still  held  her  old  place  in  his 
heart,  and  she  resolved  to  make  amends  in  the  evening 
for  her  unlucky  speech. 


466  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

With  a  smile  she  said  to  herself:  "  If  he  only  knew  that 
I  would  prefer  the  coarsest,  scantiest  fare  provided  by 
him,  to  the  most  costly  banquet,  he  would  not  have  gone 
away  with  that  long  face.  How  rich  life  would  be  if  I 
could  commence  it  with  him,  and  we  struggle  up  to- 
gether. Oh,  Heaven  grant,"  she  sighed,  looking  earnestly 
upward,  "that  through  these  wonderful  terrible  changes,  I 
majp  climb  the  mountain  at  his  side,  as  he  so  graphically 
portrayed  it  in  his  picture." 

Mrs.  Learned  still  slept,  and  her  husband  in  an 
agony  of  anxiety  watched  at  her  side.  At  last,  a  little 
before  midday,  she  opened  her  eyes  and  said  in  her  natu- 
ral tone: 
,  "Why,  John,  I  must  have  greatly  overslept.  Where  am 
T  ? "  and  then,  as  her  husband  commenced  fairly  sobbing 
for  joy,  she  started  up  and  said  hurriedly : 

"  What  is  the  matter  ?     What  has  happened  ? " 

"  Oh,  be  calm,"  whispered  Christine  to  the  Professor. 
"  Everything  depends  on  keeping  her  quiet."  Then  she 
bent  over  her  friend,  and  said  :  "  Do  not  be  alarmed,  Su- 
sie ;  you  are  now  safe  and  well,  and  so  is  your  husband. 
But  you  have  been  sick,  and  for  his  sake  and  your  own 
you  must  keep  quiet." 

She  turned  inquiringly  to  her  husband,  who  said  more 
calmly : 

"  It  is  all  true,  and  if  you  can  only  be  careful  we  can 
go  back  to  Boston  as  well  as  ever." 

"  I  will  do  anything  you  say,  John,  but  why  am  I  in  a 
church  ? " 

"  You  were  taken  sick  in  the  street,  and  this  was  the 
rearest  place  to  bring  you." 

"  Oh,  dear,  I  have  had  such  strange,  dreadful  dreams. 
1  am  so  glad  they  were  only  dreams,  and  you  are  here  with 
me,"  and  she  lay  quietly  holding  her  husband's  hands  and 


DR.  ARTEN  STRUCK  BY  LIGHTNING.  467 

looking  contentedly  in  his  face  ;  and  it  was  evident  she  was 
herself  again,  and  much  better. 

Dr.  Arten  soon  after  came  and  said  cheerily : 

"All  right!  all  right!  will  have  you  out  in  a  d..y  or 
two  as  good  as  new,  and  then,  Miss  Ludolph,  you  see  how 
much  more  grateful  she  is  to  the  old  Doctor  than  you  were." 

"  You  must  present  your  bill,"  replied  Christine  with  a 
smile.  » 

"  May  I  ? "  retorted  the  Doctor,  wiping  his  lips. 

"  Oh,  I  don't  know  about  that,"  cried  Christine,  adding 
quickly,  "  when  I  welcome  you  to  my  own  home  you  may." 

"  An  old  maid's  hall,  I  suppose." 

"  It  will  be  an  orphan's  home  at  least,"  said  Christine, 
softly  and  sadly. 

Tears  sprang  to  the  old  man's  eyes,  and  putting  his 
arm  around  her  he  drew  her  to  him  saying,  as  he  stroked 
her  drooping  head  : 

"  Poor  child !  poor  child  !  I  did  not  know.  But  you 
shall  never  want  a  protector  while  the  old  Doctor  is  above 
ground.  As  far  as  possiblg  I  will  be  a  father  to  you,"  and 
Christine  knew  she  had  found  a  friend  as  true  and  strong 
as  steel,  and  she  buried  her  face  on  his  shoulder  and  cried 
as  trustingly  as  his  own  child  might. 

"  Oh,  Christine,"  cried  Mrs.  Learned,  "  I  am  so  sorry 
for  you." 

At  the  voice  of  her  old  friend  she  at  once  rallied,  and 
trying  to  smile  through  her  tears,  said : 

"  God  has  been  so  much  better  to  me  than  I  deserved 
that  I  have  only  gratitude  when  I  think  of  myself ;  but  my 
poor  father,"  and  again  she  covered  her  face  and  wept. 

"  Christine,  come  here,"  said  Mrs.  Learned  softly,  and 
she  put  her  arms  around  the  weeping  girl.  "  You  spoke 
of  God's  being  good  to  you  Have  you  in  truth  found  an^ 
learned  to  trust  Him  .' " 


468  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"  Yes,"  she  replied  eagerly,  joy  and  peace  coming  out 
in  her  face  like  the  sun  shining  through  clouds  and  rain. 
Then  with  bowed  head  she  whispered  low,  "  The  one  1 
wronged  on  earth  led  me  to  the  one  I  wi^onged  in  Heaven, 
and  both  have  forgiven  me.     Oh,  I  am  so  glad,  so  happy." 

"  Then  you  have  seen  Mr.  Fleet  ? " 

"  Yes,  he  saved  my  life  again  and  again,  but  in  teich- 
ing  me  how  to  find  my  Saviour,  he  has  done  far  more  for 
me." 

"And  you  will  not  wrong  him  any  more,  will  you,  Chris- 
tine?    He  has  loved  you  so  long  and  faithfully." 

In  reply  she  lifted  an  eager  face  to  her  friend  and  said : 
"  Do  you  think  he  can  love  me  still  after  my  treatment  of 
him  ? " 

"  Give  him  a  chance  to  tell  you,"  said  Mrs.  Learned, 
with  a  half-mischievous  smile  ;  "  has  he  not  shown  his 
feelings  ? " 

"  He  .has  treated  me  more  as  a  brother  might,  and  yet 
he  is  so  very  respectful  and  deferential — I  hope — but  I 
am  not  perfectly  sure — and  tjien  he  seems  under  some 
restraint." 

Mrs.  Learned  said  musingly  :  "  He  knows  that  you  are 
Baroness  of  Ludolph.  I  told  him  last  week,  for  I  thought 
he  ought  to  know,  and  the  fact  of  your  departure  for 
Europe  soon  has  been  no  secret  of  late.  He  thinks  you 
are  pledged  to  a  future  in  which  he  cannot  share  ;  and  in 
your  grateful  dependent  condition  he  would  not  cause  you 
the  pain  of  refusing  him.  I  think  that  is  just  where  he 
stands,"'  she  concluded,  with  a  woman's  mastery  of  the 
science  of  love,  and  taking  almost  as  much  interest  in  her 
friend's  affair  as  she  had  in  her  own.  To  most  ladies  this 
subject  has  a  peculiar  fascination,  and  having  settled  1  heir 
own  matters  they  enter  with  scarcely  less  zest  on  the  task 
of  helping   others   arrange   theirs.      Mrs.    Learned    rallied 


DR.   ARTEN   STRUCK   BY   LIGHTNING.  469 

faster  under  the  excitement  of  this  new  interest  than  from 
the  Doctor's  remedies. 

After  a  few  moments'  thought  Christine  said  decidedly : 

"  AH  that  nonsense  about  the  Baroness  of  Ludolpb  13 
passed  forever — burned  up  in  the  fire  with  many  things  of 
more  value.  I  have  been  fed  too  long  on  the  husks  of 
human  greatness  and  ambition  to  want  any  more  of  them. 
They  never  did  satisfy  me,  and  in  the  light  and  heat  of  the 
terrific  ordeal  through  which  I  have  just  passed,  they 
shrivelled  into  utter  nothingness.  I  want  something  that  I 
cannot  lose  in  a  whif  of  smoke  and  flame,  and  I  think  I 
have  found  it.  Henceforth  I  claim  no  other  character  save 
that  of  a  simple  Christian  girl."  Then  bowing  her  head 
on  her  friend's  shoulder  she  added  in  a  whisper :  "  If  I 
could  climb  to  true  greatness  by  Mr.  Fleet's  side,  as  he 
portrayed  it  in  his  picture,  it  seems  to  me  heaven  would 
begin  at  once." 

The  Doctosi  who  had  taken  the  Professor  aside,  now 
joined  them,  and  said  : 

"  Mrs.  Learned,  you  have  only  to  take  reasonable  care 
of  yourself  and  you  will  soon  recover  from  this  shock  and 
exposure.     I  wish  all  my  patients  were  doing  as  well." 

She  replied  with  a  smile,  taking  her  husband's  hand: 
"  Since  I  have  found  my  old  Greek  here,  with  his  learned 
spectacles,  I  am  quite  myself,  and  feel  as  if  I  were  only 
playing  invalid." 

"  You  may  have  slept  in  a  church  before,"  said  the 
Doctor  with  a  twinkle  in  his  eye,  "  and  you  must  do  so 
again.  But  no  one  will  thunder  at  you  from  the  pulpit 
this  time,  so  I  leave  you  in  peace  and  security,  and  to-night 
will  be  within  call." 

Christine  followed  him  to  to  the  lobby  of  the  church, 
when  the  irrepressible  joker  could  not  forbear  saying, 
"Now  let  me  give  >ou  a  little  paternal  advice.     Don't   be 


470  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

too  grateful  to  that  young  Fleet.  He  only  did  his  duty, 
and  of  course  doesn't  deserve  any  special — " 

Christine,  with  flushing  cheeks,  interrupted  him  as  if 
she  had  not  heard  : 

"  Doctor,  how  good  and  kind  you  are.  Here  you  are 
off  without  any  rest  to  look  after  the  sick  and  suffering,  and 
you  seem  to  bring  health  and  hope  wherever  you  go." 

"  Yes,  yes;  but  I  send  my  bill  in  too — mind  that." 
(Some  of  his  poorer  patients  never  received  any,  and  when 
twitted  of  the  fact  he  would  mutter  roughly,  "Business 
oversight — can't  attend  to  everything.") 

Christine  looked  for  a  moment  at  the  face  so  contagious 
in  its  hearty  benevolence,  and  with  an  impulse,  so  unlike 
the  cold  haughty  girl  of  old,  sprang  forward,  threw  her  arms 
around  his  neck,  and  gave  him  a  kiss  which  he  declared 
afterwards  was  like  a  mild  stroke  of  lightning,  and  said  : 

"  And  there  is  the  first  instalment  of  what  I  owe  you." 

The  old  gentleman  looked  as  if  he  decidedly  liked  the 
currency,  and  with  moistened  eyes  that  he  vainly  tried  to 
render  humorous,  he  raised  his  finger  impressively  in  part- 
ing, and  said : 

"  Don't  you  ever  get  out  of  debt  to  me." 


CHAPTER   LI.  • 

BILL   CRONK'S   toast. 

After  all,  it  was  a  long  day  to  Christine.  Tears  would 
ttart  from  her  eyes  at  the  thought  of  her  father,  but  she 
realized  that  the  only  thing  for  her  to  do  was  to  shroud  his 
memory  in  a  great  forgiving  pity,  and  put  it  away  forever. 
She  could  only  turn  from  the  mystery  of  his  life  and  death 


BILL  CRONK'S  TOAST.  ^y, 

— the  mystery  of  evil--to  Him  who  taketh  away  the  sin  of 
the  world.  There  was  no  darkness  in  that  direction.  She 
busied  herself  with  Mrs.  Learned,  and  the  distribution  of 
food  to  others,  till  six  o'clock,  and  then  she  stood  near  the 
door  to  watch  till  her  true  knight  should  appear  in  his 
shirt-sleeves,  with  shovel  on  his  shoulder,  and  an  old  burnt, 
tattered  felt  hat  on  his  head,  instead  of  jewelled  crest  and 
heron  plume. 

Dennis  had  gone  to  his  work  not  very  hopeful.  He 
knew  Christine  would  be  his  grateful  friend  while  she  lived, 
and  might  even  regard  him  as  a  brother,  but  all  this  might 
be  and  still  she  be  unable  to  respond  to  his  deeper  feelings. 
Moreover,  he  knew  she  was  Baroness  of  Ludolph,  and 
might  be  heiress  of  such  titles  and  estates  in  Germany  as 
would  require  that  she  should  go  at  once  to  secure  them  ; 
and  so  she  seemed  clearly  to  pass  beyond  his  sphere. 

As  he  shovelled  the  hot  bricks  and  cinders  hour  after 
hour  among  other  laborers,  the  distance  between  himself 
and  the  Baroness  of  Ludolph  seemed  to  increase  :  and 
when,  begrimed  and  weary,  he  sat  down  to  eat  his  dinner 
of  a  single  sandwich  saved  from  breakfast  (for  as  yet  he 
had  no  money),  the  ruins  around  him  were  quite  in  keep- 
ing with  his  feelings.  He  thought  most  regretfully  of  his 
two  thousand  dollars  and  burned  picture.  The  brave  reso- 
lute spirit  of  the  morning  had  deserted  him.  He  did  not 
realize  that  few  men  have  lived  who  could  be  brave  and 
hopeful  when  weary  and  hungry,  and  fewer  still,  when,  in 
addition,  they  doubted  the  favor  of  the  lady  of  their  Icve. 

The  work  of  the  afternoon  seemed  desperately  hard 
and  long,  but  with  dogged  persistency,  Dennis  held  his 
own  with  the  others  till  six,  and  in  common  with  them  re- 
ceived his  two  dollars.  Whether  Christine  would  accept  the 
supper  he  brought  or  not,  he  determined  to  fulfil  his  promise 
and  bring  one.     Wearily  he  trudged  off  to  the  west  side, 


472  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

in  order  to  find  a  store.  No  one  who  met  him  would  have 
imagined  that  this  plodding  laborer  was  the  artist  who  the 
week  before  had  won  the  prize  and  title  of  genius. 

If  he  had  been  purchasing  a  supper  for  himself,  he 
would  doubtless  have  been  sensible  about  it ;  but  one  that 
the  Baroness  of  Ludolph  might  share  was  a  different  mat- 
ter. He  bought  some  very  rich  cake,  a  can  of  peaches,  a 
box  of  sardines,  some  fruit,  and  then  his  money  gave  out ! 
But,  with  these  incongruous  and  indigestible  articles  made 
up  into  one  large  bundle,  he  started  for  the  church.  He 
had  gone  but  a  little  way,  when  some  one  rushed  upon 
him,  and  little  Ernst  clasped  him  round  the  neck  and  fairly 
cried  for  joy.  Sitting  on  the  sidewalk  near  were  the  other 
little  Bruders,  looking  as  forlorn  and  dirty  as  three  mother- 
less children  could.  Dennis  stopped  and  sat  down  beside 
them  (for  he  was  too  tired  to  stand),  while  Ernst  told  his 
story — how  their  mother  had  left  them,  and  how  she  had 
been  found  so  burned  that  she  was  recognized  only  by  a 
ring  (which  he  had)  and  a  bit  of  the  picture  preserved 
under  her  body.  They  had  been  looking  ever  since  to  find 
him,  and  had  slept  where  they  could. 

As  Ernst  sobbingly  told  his  story  the  other  children 
cried  in  dolefiil  chorus,  and  Dennis'  tears  fell  fast  too,  as 
he  realized  how  his  humble  friend  had  perished.  He  re- 
membered her  kindness  to  his  mother  and  little  sisters, 
and  his  heart  acknowledged  the  claim  of  these  poor  little 
orphans.  Prudence  whispered,  "  You  cannot  afford  to 
burden  yourself  with  all  these  children,"  and  pride  added, 
"  What  a  figure  you  will  make  in  presenting  yourself  be- 
fore the  Baroness  of  Ludolph  with  all  these  children  at 
your  heels."  But  he  put  such  thoughts  resolutely  aside, 
and  spoke  as  a  brother  might  ;  and  when  one  of  the  chil- 
dren sobbed,  "  We  so  hungry !  "  out  came  the  Baroness  of 
Ludolph's  fruit  and  cake   and  nothing  remained  for  Chris 


BILL   CRONK'S  toast.  473 

tine  but  the  sardines  and  peaches,  since  these  could  not 
well  be  opened  in  the  street.  The  little  Bruders  having 
devoured  what  seemed  to  them  the  ambrosia  of  the  gods, 
he  took  the  youngest  in  his  arms,  Ernst  following  with  the 
Others  ;  and  so  they  slowly  made  their  way  to  the  church 
where  Christine  was  now  anxiously  waiting  with  many  sur- 
mises and  forebodings  at  Dennis'  delay. 

Ai  last,  in  the  dusk,  the  little  group  appeared  at  the 
church  door,  and  she  exclaimed  : 

"  What  has  kept  you  so,  Mr.  Fleet  ? " 

He  determined  to  put  the  best  face  on  the  situation, 
and  indulge  in  no  heroics,  so  he  said:  "You  could  not 
expect  such  a  body  of  infantry  as  this  to  march  rapidly." 

"  What !  "  she  exclaimed,  "  have  you  brought  all  the 
lost  children  in  the  city  back  with  you  ? " 

"  No,  only  those  that  fell  properly  to  my  care,"  and  in 
a  few  words  he  told  their  story. 

"  And  do  you,  without  a  cent  in  the  world,  mean  to 
assume  the  burden  of  these  four  children  ? "  she  asked  in 
accents  of  surprise. 

He  could  not  see  her  face,  but  his  heart  sank  within 
him,  for  he  thought  that  to  her  it  would  seem  quixotic  and 
become  another  barrier  between  them,  but  he  answered 
firmly : 

"Yes,  till  God  who  has  imposed  the  burden,  removes 
it,  and  enables  me  to  place  them  among  friends  in  a  good 
home.  Mrs.  Bruder,  before  she  died,  wrote  to  her  family 
in  Germany,  telling  her  whole  story.  Relatives  may  take 
the  children  ;  if  not,  some  way  will  be  provided." 

"  Mr.  Fleet,  I  wonder  at  you,"  was  her  answer.  "  Give 
me  that  child,  and  you  bring  the  others." 

He  wondered  at  her  as  he  saw  her  take  the  child  and 
hnprint  a  kiss  on  the  sleepy,  dirty  face ;  and  Ernst,  who 
-  had  been  eyeing  her  askance,  crept  timidly  nearer  when 
he  saw  the  kiss,  and  whispered: 


474  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAV. 

"  Perhaps  her  old  outside  heart  has  been  burnt  away." 

They  followed  to  a  lobby  of  the  lecture-room,  and  here 
she  procured  a  damp  towel  and  proceeded  to  remove  the 
tear  and  dust  stains  from  the  round  and  wondering  faces 
of  the  children.  Having  restored  them  to  something  of 
their  original  color,  she  took  them  away  to  supper,  saying 
to  Dennis  with  a  decided  nod  : 

"  You  stay  here  till  I  come  for  you." 

Something  in  her  manner  reminded  him  of  the  same  ' 
little  autocrat  who  ordered  him  about  when  they  arranged 
the  store  together.     She  soon  returned  with  a  basin  of 
water  and  a  towel  saying  : 

"  See  what  a  luxury  you  secure  by  obeying  orders. 
Now  give  an  account  of  yourself,  as  every  lady's  knight 
should  on  his  return.     How  have  you  spent  the  day  ? " 

He  could  not  forbear  laughing  as  he  said :  "  My  em- 
ployment has  been  almost  ludicrously  incongruous  with 
the  title  by  which  you  honor  me.  I  have  been  shovelling 
brick  and  mortar  with  other  laborers." 

"All  day?" 

"All  day." 

Her  glance  became  so  tender  and  wistful  that  he  for- 
got to  wash  his  hands  in  looking  at  her,  and  felt  for  the 
moment  as  if  he  could  shovel  rubbish  forever,  if  such 
could  be  his  reward. 

Seemingly  by  an  effort,  she  regained  her  brusque 
manner,  which  he  did  not  know  was  but  the  mask  she 
was  trying  to  wear,  and  said  quickly : 

"What  is  the  matter?  Why  don't  you  wash  your 
face?" 

"  You  told  me  to  give  an  account  of  myself,"  he  re- 
torted, at  the  same  time  showing  rising  color  in  his  dust- 
begrimed  fiice. 

"Well,  one  of  your  ability  can  do  two  things  at  once. 
What  have  you  cjot  in  that  bundle  ?  " 


BILL  CRONK'S  TOAST.  475 

"  You  may  have  forgotten,  but  I  promised  to  bring  you 
home  something  that  you  chose  to  regard  as  charity." 

"  If  I  was  so  ungracious,  you  ought  to  have  rewarded 
me  by  bringing  me  a  broken  brick.  Will  you  let  me  see 
what  you  brought  ?  "  But  without  waiting  for  permission 
she  pounced  upon  the  bundle  and  dragged  out  the  peaches 
and  sardines. 

He,  having  washed  and  partially  wiped  his  face,  was 
now  able  to  display  more  of  his  embarrassment,  and  added 
apologetically  : 

"  That  is  not  all  I  had.  I  also  bought  some  cake  and 
fruit  and  then  my  money  gave  out." 

"And  do  you  mean  to  say  that  you  have  no  money 
left?" 

"  Not  a  penny,"  he  answered  desperately. 

"  But  where  is  the  cake  and  fruit  ?  " 

"  Well,"  he  said  laughingly,  "  I  found  the  little  Bru 
ders  famishing  on  the  sidewalk,  and  they  got  the  best  part 
of  your  supper." 

"  What  an  escape  I  have  had  !  "  she  exclaimed.  "  Do 
you  think  I  should  have  survived  the  night  if  I  had  eaten 
those  strangely  assorted  dainties,  as  in  honor  bound  I  would 
have  done,  since  you  brought  them  ? "  Then  with  a  face  of 
comical  severity  she  turned  upon  him  and  said,  "  Mr.  Fleet, 
you  need  some  one  to  take  care  of  you.  What  kind  of 
economy  do  you  call  this,  sir,  especially  on  the  part  of  one 
who  has  burdened  himself  with  four  helpless  children  ? " 

There  was  a  mingling  of  sense  and  seriousness  in  her 
raillery,  which  he  recognized,  and  he  said,  with  a  half-vexed 
laugh  at  himself: 

"  Well,  really.  Miss  Ludolph,  I  suppose  that  I  have  not 
wholly  regained  my  wits  since  the  fire.  I  throw  myself  on 
your  mercy."  (The  same  expression  he  had  used  once 
before.     She  remembered  it,  and  her  face  changed  instant- 


476  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

ly.)  Turning  hastily  away  to  hide  her  feelings,  she  said, 
in  rather  a  husky  voice : 

"  When  I  was  a  wicked  fool,  I  told  you  I  had  none ;  but 
I  think  I  am  a  little  changed  now."  Then  she  added 
sharply,  "  Please  don't  stand  there  keeping  our  friends 
waiting,"  and  she  led  the  way  into  the  lecture-room  now 
filled  with  tables  and  hungr)'  people. 

Dennis  was  in  a  maze,  and  could  scarcely  understand 
her.  She  was  so  different  from  the  pensive  lady,  shrinking 
from  the  rude  contact  with  the  world,  that  he  had  expected 
to  meet.  He  did  not  realize  that  there  was  not  a  particle 
of  weak  sentimentality  about  her,  and  now  that  pride  was 
gone,  her  energetic  spirit  would  make  her  a  leader  in  scenes 
like  these  as  truly  as  those  in  which  she  always  had  been 
at  home.  Much  less  could  he  understand  that  she  was 
hiding  a  heart  brimming  over  with  love  to  him. 

He  followed  her,  however,  with  much  assumed  humility. 
When  in  the  middle  of  the  room,  who  should  meet  him 
squarely  but  Bill  Cronk  ? 

"  Hollo !  "  he  roared,  giving  Dennis  a  slap  on  his  back 
that  startled  even  the  hungry  apathetic  people  at  the 
tables. 

Dennis  was  now  almost  desperate.  Glad  as  he  was 
to  see  Cronk,  he  felt  that  he  was  gathering  around  him  as 
incongruous  a  company  as  was  the  supper  he  had  brought 
home.  If  Yahcob  Bunk  or  even  the  red-nosed  bar-tender 
should  appear  to  claim  him  as  brother,  he  would  scarcely 
have  been  surprised.  He  naturally  thought  that  the  Baro- 
ness of  Ludolph  might  hesitate  before  entering  such  a 
circle  of  intimates.  But  he  was  not  guilty  of  the  meanness 
of  cutting  a  humble  friend,  even  though  he  saw  the  eyes  of 
Christine  resting  on  him.  In  his  embarrassment,  however, 
he  held  out  the  wash-basin  in  his  confused  effort  to  shake 
hands,  and  said  heartily  : 


BILL  CRONK'S  TOAST.  ^jj 

"  Why,  Cronk,  I  am  glad  you  came  safely  out  of  it." 

"  Is  this  gentleman  a  friend  of  yours  ? "  asked  Christine 
with  inimitable  grace. 

"  Yes  ! "  said  Dennis  firmly,  though  coloring  somewhat 
He  once  rendered  me  a  great  kindness — " 

"  Well,  Miss,  you  bet  your  money  on  the  right  boss  that 
time,"  interrupted  Bill.  "  If  I  hain't  a  friend  of  his'n  I'd 
like  to  know  where  you'll  find  one  ;  though  I  did  kick  up 
like  a  cussed  ole  mule  when  he  knocked  the  bottle  out  of 
my  hand.     Like  a  nuff  if  he  hadn't  I  wouldn't  be  here." 

"  Won't  you  present  me,  Mr.  Fleet  ? "  said  Christine  with 
an  amused  twinkle  in  her  eye. 

"  Mr.  Cronk,"  said  Dennis  (who  had  now  reached  that 
state  of  mind  when  one  becomes  reckless),  "  this  lady  is 
Miss  Ludolph,  and,  I  hope  I  may  venture  to  add,  another 
friend  of  mine." 

She  at  once  put  out  her  hand,  that  seemed  like  a  snow- 
flake  in  the  great  homy  paw  of  the  drover,  and  said : 

"Indeed,  Mr.  Cronk,  I  will  permit  no  one  to  claim 
stronger  friendship  to  Mr.  Fleet  than  mine." 

"  I  can  take  any  friend  of  Mr.  Fleet's  to  my  buzzom  at 
once,"  said  Bill,  speaking  figuratively,  but  Christine  instinct- 
ively shrank  nearer  Dennis.  In  talking  with  men,  Bill  used 
the  off-hand  vernacular  of  his  calling,  but  when  addressing 
ladies,  he  evidently  thought  that  a  certain  style  of  metaphor 
bordering  on  sentiment  was  the  proper  thing.  But  Chris- 
tine said : 

"  As  a  friend  of  Mr.  Fleet's  you  shall  join  our  party  at 
once,"  and  she  led  them  to  the  farther  end  of  the  room, 
where  at  a  table  sat  Dr.  Arten,  Professor  and  Mrs.  Learned, 
Ernst  and  the  little  Bruders,  who  at  the  prospect  of  more 
eating  were  wide  awake  again.  After  the  most  hearty 
greetings  they  were  seated,  and  she  took  her  place  by  the 
side  of  the  little  children  in  order  to  wait  on  them.     Few 

21 


478  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAV. 

more  remarkable  groups  sat  down  together,  even  in  that 
time  of  chaos  and  deprivation.  Professor  Learned  was 
without  vest  .or  collar,  and  sat  with  coat  buttoned  tight  up 
to  his  chin  to  hide  the  defect  He  had  lost  his  scholaily 
gold-rimmed  spectacles  and  a  wonderful  pair  of  goggles 
bestrode  his  nose  in  their  place.  Mrs.  Learned  was  lost  in 
the  folds  of  an  old  delaine  dress  that  was  a  mile  too  large, 
and  her  face  looked  as  if  she  had  assisted  actively  in  an 
Irish  wake.  Dr.  Arten  did  the  honors  at  the  head  of  the 
table  in  his  dress  coat  and  vest  that  were  once  white, 
though  he  no  longer  figured  around  in  red  flannel  draw- 
ers as  he  had  on  the  beach.  The  little  round  faces  of 
the  Bruders  seemed  as  if  protruding  from  animated  rag 
babies,  while  nothing  could  dim  the  glory  of  Ernst's  great 
spiritual  eyes,  as  they  gratefully  and  wistfully  followed 
Dennis'  every  movement.  Cronk  was  in  a  very  dilapidated 
and  famished  state,  and  endured  many  and  varied  tortures 
in  his  efforts  to  be  polite  while  he  bolted  sandwiches  at  a- 
rate  that  threatened  famine.  Christine  still  wore  the  wool- 
len dress  she  had  so  hastily  donned  by  Dennis  assistance 
on  Sunday  night,  and  the  marks  of  the  fire  were. all  over  it. 
Around  her  neck  the  sparks  had  burned  a  hole  here  and 
there  through  which  her  white  shoulders  gleamed.  While 
she  was  self-possessed  and  asiduous  in  her  attention  to  the 
little  children,  there  was  a  glow  of  excitement  in  her  eyes, 
which  perhaps  Mrs.  Learned  understood  better  than  any- 
one else,  though  the  shrewd  old  Doctor  was  anything  but 
Wind. 

Dennis  sat  next  to  Christine  in  shirt-sleeves  once  white, 
but  now  through  dust  and  smoke  as  many  colors  as  Jo 
seph's  coat.  He  was  too  weary  to  eat  much,  and  there  was 
a  weight  upon  his  spirits  that  he  could  not  throw  off,  the 
inevitable  despondency  that  follows  great  fatigue,  when  the 
mind  is  not  at  rest. 


BILL  CRONK'S  TOAST.  ^yg 

Christine  sprang  up  and  brought  him  a  huge  mug  of  hot 
coffee. 

"  Really,  Miss  Ludolph,"  he  remonstrated, "  you  should 
n  )t  wait  on  me  in  this  style." 

**  You  may  well  feel  honored,  sir,"  said  Mrs.  Learned. 
"*  It  is  not  every  man  that  is  waited  on  by  a  Baroness." 

"  The  trouble  with  Christine  is  that  she  is  too  grateful," 
put  in  the  old  Doctor. 

"  Now  I  should  say  that  was  scarcely  possible  in  view 
of — "  commenced  the  Professor  innocently. 

"  I  really  hope  Miss  Ludolph  will  do  nothing  more  from 
gratitude,"  interrupted  Dennis  in  a  low  tone  that  showed 
decided  annoyance. 

The  Doctor  and  Mrs.  Learned  were  ready  to  burst  with 
some  suppressed  amusement,  and  Cronk  seeing  something 
going  on  that  he  did  not  understand,  looked  curiously 
around  with  a  sandwich  half  way  to  his  open  mouth,  while 
Ernst,  believing  Dennis  wronged  from  his  tone,  turned  his 
great  eyes  reproachfully  from  one  to  another.  But  Christine 
was  equal  to  the  occasion.  Lifting  her  head  and  looking 
round  with  a  free  clear  glance  she  said  : 

"  And  I  say  that  men  who  meet  this  great  disaster  with 
courage  and  fortitude,  and  hopefully  set  about  retrieving  it, 
possess  an  inherent  nobility  such  as  no  King  or  Kaiser 
could  bestow,  and  were  I  twenty  times  a  Baroness,  I  would 
esteem  it  an  honor  to  wait  upon  them." 

A  round  of  applause  followed  this  speech  in  which 
Cronk  joined  vociferously,  and  Mrs.  Learned  cried,  "  Oh, 
Christine,  how  beautifully  I  learn  from  your  face  the  differ- 
ence between  dignity  and  pride.  That  was  your  same  old 
proud  look,  changed  and  glorified  into  something  so  much 
better." 

Dennis  also  saw  her  expression  and  could  not  diguise 
his  admiration,  but  every  moment  he  felt  more  how  despei 


48o  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

ately  hard  it  would  be  to  give  her  up,  now  that  she  seemed 
to  realize  his  very  ideal  of  womanhood. 

And  ( 'ronk,  having  satisfied  the  clamors  of  his  appetite, 
began  to  be  fascinated  in  his  rough  way  with  her  grace  and 
beaut) ,  Nudging  Dennis  he  asked  in  a  loud  whisper  heard 
by  all  and  which  nearly  caused  Dr.  Arten  to  choke : 

"The  young  filly  is  a  German  lady,  ain't  she?" 

Dennis,  much  embarrassed  nodded  assent. 

A  happy  thought  struck  Bill.  Though  impeded  by  the 
weight  of  indefinite  sandwiches,  he  slowly  rose  and  looked 
solemnly  round  on  the  little  group.  Dennis  trembled,  for 
he  feared  some  dreadful  bull  on  the  part  of  his  rough  but 
well-meaning  friend,  but  Dr.  Arten  in  a  state  of  intense  en- 
joyment, cried, 

"  Mr.  Cronk  has  the  floor." 

Lifting  a  can  of  coffee  containing  about  a  quart,  the 
Drover  said  impressively  and  with  an  attempt  at  great 
stateliness  : 

"  Beautiful  ladies  and  honorable  gentlemen  here  assem- 
bled, I  would  respectfully  ask  you  to  drink  to  a  toast  in 
this  harmless  beverage :  The  United  States  of  Ameraky  ! 
When  the  two  great  elemental  races — the  sanguinary  Yan- 
kee and  the  pleagmatic  German — become  one,  and,  as  rep- 
resented in  the  blooded  team  before  me  (waving  his  hand 
majestically  over  the  heads  of  Dennis  and  Christine),  pull 
up  in  the  traces  together,  how  will  the  ship  of  state  go  for- 
ward ? "  and  his  face  disappeared  behind  his  huge  flagon 
of  coffee  in  the  deepest  pledge.  Bill  thought  he  had  ut- 
tered a  very  profound  and  elegant  sentiment,  but  his  speech 
fell  like  a  bomb-shell  in  the  little  company. 

"  The  very  spirit  of  mischief  is  about  to-day,"  Dennis 
groaned.  And  Christine  with  a  face  like  a  peony  snatched 
up  the  youngest  little  Bruder,  saying,  "  It  is  time  these 
sleepy  children  were  abed,"  but  the  Doctor  and  the  Learn- 


EVERY   BARRIER  BURNED  AWAY.  481 

eds  went  off  again  and  again  in  uncontrollable'fits  of  laugh- 
ter, in  which  Dennis  could  not  refrain  from  joining,  though 
he  wished  the  unlucky  Cronk  a  thousand  miles  away. 
Bill  put  down  his  mug,  stared  around  in  a  surprised  and 
non-plussed  manner,  and  then  said  in  his  loud  whisper 

"  I  say,  Fleet,  was  there  any  hitch  in  what  I  said  ? " 

This  set  them  off  again,  but  Dennis  answered  good- 
naturedly,  slapping  his  friend  on  his  shoulder: 

"  Cronk,  you  would  make  a  man  laugh  in  the  face  of 
fate." 

Bill  took  this  as  a  compliment,  and  the  strange  party 
thrown  together  by  an  event  that  mingled  every  class  in 
the  community,  broke  up  and  went  their  several  ways. 


CHAPTER  LII. 

EVERY  BARRIER  BURNED  AWAY. 

Dennis  was  glad  to  escape,  and  went  to  a  side  door 
where  he  could  cool  his  hot  cheeks  in  the  night  air.  He 
fairly  dreaded  to  meet  Christine  again,  and  even  where  the 
wind  blew  cold  upon  him  his  cheeks  grew  hotter  and  hot- 
ter, as  he  remembered  what  had  occurred.  He  had  been 
there  but  a  little  time  when  a  light  hand  fell  on  his  arm 
and  he  was  startled  by  her  voice  : 

"  Mr.  Fleet,  are  you  very  tired  ? " 

"  Not  in  the  least,"  he  answered  eagerly. 

"You  must  be  :  it  is  WTong  for  me  to  think  of  it" 

"Miss  Ludolph,  please  tell  me  what  I  can  do  for 
you?" 

She  looked  at  him  wistfully  and  said  : 

"  This  is  a  time  when  loss  and  disaster  burden  eveiy 


482  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

heart,  and  I  know  it  is  a  duty  to  try  to  maintain  a  cheerful 
courage,  and  forget  personal  troubles.  I  have  tred  to-day, 
and,  with  God's  help,  hope  in  time  to  succeed.  While 
endeavoring  to  wear  in  public  a  cheerful  face,  I  may  per- 
haps now,  and  to  so  true  a  friend  as  yourself,  show  more  of 
my  real  feelings.  Is  it  too  far — would  it  take  too  long,  to  go 
to  where  my  father  died  .?  His  remains  could  not  have  been 
removed." 

"  Alas,  Miss  Ludolph,"  said  Dennis,  very  gently, 
"  there  can  be  no  visible  remains.  The  words  of  the  Prayer 
Book  are  literally  true  in  this  case — 'Ashes  to  ashes.' 
But  I  can  take  you  to  the  spot,  and  it  is  natural  that  you 
should  wish  to  go.     Are  you  equal  to  the  fatigue  ? " 

"  I  will  not  feel  it  if  you  go  with  me,  and  then  we  can 
ride  part  of  the  way,  for  I  have  a  little  money.  (Dr.  Arten 
had  insisted  on  her  taking  some.)  Wait  for  me  a  moment." 

She  soon  reappeared  with  her  shawl  cut  in  two  equal 
parts.  One  she  insisted  on  folding  and  putting  around 
him  as  the  Scotsman  wears  his  plaid.  ''  You  will  need  it 
in  the  cool  night  wind,"  she  said,  and  then  taking  his  arm 
in  perfect  trust,  they  started. 

In  the  cars  she  gave  him  her  money,  and  he  said,  "  I 
will  return  my  fare  to-morrow  night." 

"  What !  "  she  replied,  looking  a  little  hurt.  "  After 
spending  two  dollars  on  me  will  you  not  take  five  cents  in 
return. 

"  But  I  spent  it  foolishly." 

"  You  spent  it  like  a  generous  man.  Surely,  Mr.  Fleet, 
you  did  not  understand  my  badinage  this  evening.  If  I 
had  not  spoken  to  you  in  that  strain,  I  could  not  have 
spoken  at  all.  You  have  been  a  brother  to  me,  and  we 
should  not  stand   on  these  little  things." 

"  That  is  it,"  thought  he  again.  "  She  looks  upon  and 
trusts  me  as  a  brother,  and  such  I  must  try  to  be  till  she 


EVERY  BARRIER   BURNED  AWAY.  483 

departs  for  her  own  land ;  yet  if  she  knew  the  agony  of  the 
effort  she  would  scarcely  ask  it." 

But  as  they  left  the  car,  he  said :  "  All  that  you  would 
ask  from  a  brother  please  ask  from  me." 

She  put  her  hand  in  his,  and  said :  "  I  now  ask  your 
support,  sympathy  and  prayer,  for  I  feel  that  T  shall  need 
all  here." 

Still  retaining  her  hand,  he  placed  it  on  his  arm  and 
guided  her  most  carefully  around  the  hot  njins  and  heaps 
of  rubbish  till  they  came  to  where  the  Art  Building  had 
stood.  The  moon  shone  brightly  down,  lighting  up  with 
weird  and  ghostly  effect  the  few  walls  remaining.  They 
were  utterly  alone  in  the  midst  of  a  desolation  sevenfold 
more  impressive  than  that  of  the  desert.  Pointing  to  the 
spot  where,  in  the  midst  of  his  treasures  of  art  and  idolized 
worldly  possessions,  Mr.  Ludolph  had  perished,  she  said  in 
a  thrilling  whisper : 

"  My  father's  ashes  are  there." 

"  Yes." 

Her  breath  came  quick  and  short,  and  her  face  was  so 
pale  and  agonized  that  he  trembled  for  her,  but  he  tight- 
ened his  grasp  on  her  hand  and  his  tears  fell  with  hers. 

"  Oh,  my  father,"  she  cried  in  a  tone  of  indescribable 
pathos,  "  can  I  never,  never  see  you  again  ?  Can  I  never 
tell  you  of  the  love  of  Jesus,  and  the  better  and  happier 
life  beyond  ?  Oh,  how  my  heart  yearns  after  you  !  God  for- 
give me  if  this  is  wrong,  but  I  cannot  help  it ! " 

"  It  is  not  wrong,"  said  Dennis  brokenly.  "  Our  Lord 
himself  wept  over  those  He  could  not  save." 

"  It  is  all  that  I  can  do,"  she  murmured,  and  leaning 
her  head  on  his  shoulder,  a  tempest  of  sobs  shook  her 
person 

He  supported  her  tenderly  as  a  brother  might,  and 
•aid  in  Ibe  accents  of  the  deepest  sympathy :  "  My  pooi 


484  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

sorrowing  sister,  let  every  tear  fall  that  will ;  they  will  do 
you  good."  At  last,  as  she  became  calmer,  he  added: 
"  Remember  that  your  great  Elder  brother  has  called  the 
heav}'  laden  to  him  for  rest." 

At  last  she  raised  her  head,  turned,  and  gave  one  long 
parting  look,  and,  as  Dennis  saw  it  in  the  white  moomight, 
it  was  the  face  of  a  pitying  angel.  A  low  "  Farewell !  '* 
trembled  from  her  lips,  and  leaning  heavily  on  his  arm 
they  turned  away,  and  seemingly  the  curtain  fell  between 
father  and  child  to  rise  no  more. 

"  Mr.  Fleet,"  she  said  pleadingly,  "  are  you  too  tired  to 
take  me  to  my  old  home  on  the  north  side  ?  " 

"  Miss  Ludolph,  I  could  go  to  the  ends  of  the  earth 
for  you,  but  you  are  not  equal  to  this  strain  upon  your 
feelings.     Have  mercy  on  yourself." 

But  she  said  in  a  low  dreamy  tone : 

"I  wish  to  take  leave  to-night  of  my  old  life — the 
strange  sad  past  with  its  mystery  of  evil ;  and  then  I  will 
set  my  face  resolutely  toward  a  better  life — a  better 
country.  So  bear  with  me,  my  true  kind  friend,  a  little 
longer." 

"  Believe  me,  my  thought  was  all  for  you.  All  sense 
of  fatigue  has  passed  away." 

Silently  they  made  their  way,  till  they  stood  where,  a 
few  short  days  before,  rose  the  elegant  home  that  was  full 
of  sad  and  painful  memories  to  both. 

"  There  was  my  studio,"  she  said  in  the  same  dreamy 
tone,  "  where  I  indulged  in  my  wild  ambitious  dreams, 
and  sought  to  grasp  a  little  fading  circlet  of  laurel,  while 
ignoring  a  heavenly  and  immortal  crown.  There,"  she 
Doniinued,  her  pale  face  becoming  crimson,  even  in  the 
pale  moonlight,  I  most  painfully  wronged  you,  my  most 
generous,  forgiving  friend,  and  a  noble  revenge  you  took 
when  }ou  saved  my  life  and  led  me  to  a  Saviour.  May 
God  reward  you,  but  I  humbly  ask  your  pardon — " 


EVERY   BARRIER  BURNED  AWAY.  48$ 

"  Please,  Miss  Ludolph,  do  not  speak  of  that.  I  have 
buried  it  all.  Do  not  pain  yourself  by  recalling  that 
which  I  have  forgiven  and  almost  forgotten.  You  are  now 
my  ideal  of  all  that  is  noble  and  good,  and  in  my  solitary 
artist  life  of  the  future,  you  shall  be  my  gentle  yet  potent 
inspiration." 

"  Why  must  your  life  be  solitary  in  the  future  ? "  she 
asked  in  a  low  tone. 

He  was  very  pale,  and  his  arm  trembled  under  her 
hand ;  at  last  he  said  in  a  hoarse  voice : 

"  Do  not  ask  me.  Why  should  I  pain  you  by  telling 
the  truth  ? " 

"  Is  it  the  part  of  a  true  friend  to  refuse  confidence  ? " 
she  asked  reproachfully. 

He  turned  his  face  away,  that  she  might  not  see  the 
evidences  of  the  bitter  struggle  within — the  severest  he 
had  ever  known  ;  but  at  last  he  spoke  in  the  firm  and 
quiet  voice  of  victory.  She  had  called  him  brother,  and 
trusted  him  as  such.  She  had  ventured  out  alone  on  a 
sacred  mission  with  him  as  she  might  with  a  brother. 
She  was  dependent  on  him,  and  burdened  by  a  sense  of 
obligation.  His  high  sense  of  honor  forbade  that  he 
should  urge  his  suit  under  such  circumstances.  If  she 
could  not  accept,  how  painful  beyond  words  would  be  the 
necessity  of  refusal,  and  the  impression  had  become 
almost  fixed  in  his  mind  that  her  regard  for  him  was  only 
sisterly  and  grateful  in  its  character. 

"  Yes,  Miss  Ludolph,"  he  said,  "  my  silence  is  the  part 
of  true  friendship — truer  than  you  can  ever  know.  May 
Heaven's  richest  blessings  go  with  you  to  your  own  land, 
and  follow  you  through  a  long  happy  life." 

"  My  own  land  ?     This  is  my  own  land." 

"  Do  you  not  intend  to  go  abroad  at  once,  and  entei 
upon  your  ancestral  estates  as  the  Baroness  of  Ludolph  ? " 


486  BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY. 

"Not  if  I  can  earn  a  livelihood  in  Chicago,"  she 
answered  most  firmly.  "  Mr.  Fleet,  all  that  nonsense  has 
perished  as  utterly  as  this  my  former  home.  It  belongs  to 
my  old  life,  of  which  I  have  forever  taken  leave  to-night. 
My  ancestral  estate  in  Germany  is  but  a  petty  affair,  and 
mortgaged  beyond  its  real  worth  by  my  deceased  uncle. 
All  I  possess — all  I  value,  is  in  this  city.  It  was  my  father's 
ambition,  and  at  one  time  my  own,  to  restore  the  ancient 
grandeur  of  the  family  with  the  wealth  acquired  in  this 
land.  The  plan  had  lost  its  charms  to  me,  long  ago — (I 
would  not  have  gone  if  I  could  have  helped  it)  and  now  it 
is  impossible.  It  has  perished  in  flame  and  smoke  with 
something  else  more  substantial.  Mr.  Fleet,  you  see  before 
you  a  simple  American  girl.  I  claim  and  wish  to  be 
known  in  no  other  character.  If  nothing  remains  of  my 
father's  fortune  I  shall  teach  either  music  or  painting — " 

"  Oh,  Christine,"  he  interrupted,  "  forgive  me  for  speak- 
ing to  you  under  the  circumstances,  but  indeed  I  cannot 
help  it.     Is  there  hope  for  me  ? " 

She  looked  at  him  so  earnestly  as  to  remind  him  of 
her  strange  steady  gaze  when  before  he  pleaded  for  her 
love  on  that  same  spot,  but  her  hand  trembled  in  his  like 
the  flutter  of  a  frightened  bird. 

In  a  low  eager  tone  she  said,  "  And  can  you  still  truly 
love  me  after  all  the  shameful  past  ? " 

"  When  have  I  ceased  to  love  you  ? " 

With  a  little  cry  of  ecstasy,  like  the  note  of  joy  that  a 
weary  bird  might  utter  as  it  flew  into  its  nest,  she  put  her 
arm  around  his  neck  and  buried  her  face  on  his  shoulder 
and  said : 

'•'  No  hope  for  you,  Dennis,  but  perfect  certainty^  for  now 
F.vERY  Barrier  is  burned  away  !  " 

What  though  the  home  before  them  is  a  deserted  ruin  ? 
Love  is  joining  hands  that  shall  build  a  fairer  and  better 


EVERY  BARRIER   BURNED  AWAY.  487 

one,  because  filled  with  that  which  only  makes  a  home- 
love. 

What  though  all  around  are  only  dreary  ruins,  where 
the  night  wind  is  sighing  mournfully?  Love  has  transformed 
that  desert  place  into  the  Paradise  of  God  ;  and  if  such  3 
its  power  in  the  wastes  of  earthly  desolation,  what  will  be 
its  might^amid  the  perfect  scenes  of  Heaven  ? 

Our  story  is  finished. 

It  only  remains  to  say,  that  Christine  stands  high  at 
court,  but  it  is  a  grander  one  than  any  of  earth.  She  is 
allied  to  a  noble,  but  to  one  who  has  received  his  patent 
from  no  petty  sovereign  of  this  world.  She  has  lost  sight 
of  the  transient  laurel  wreath  which  she  sought  to  grasp 
at  such  cost  to  herself  and  others,  in  view  of  the  "  crown 
of  glory  that  fadeth  not  away,"  and  to  this  already,  as  an 
earnest  Christian,  she  has  added  starry  jewels. 

Below  is  the  Ludolph  Hall  in  which  sturdy  indepen- 
dence led  her  to  commence  her  married  life.  But  she  is 
Qlimbing  the  mountain  at  her  husband's  side,  and  often 
her  hands  steady  and  help.  The  ash-tree,  twined  with  the 
passion-flower,  is  not  very  far  above  them,  and  the  villa, 
beautiful  within  and  without,  is  no  vain  dream  of  the 
future.  But  even  in  happy  youth  their  eyes  of  faith  see 
in  airy  golden  outline  their  heavenly  home  awaiting. 


488 


BARRIERS  BURNED  AWAY, 


SHELTER    COMMITTEE. 


HOUSE  WITH  TWO  ROOMS. 


Note, — The  above  is  a  fac-simile  of  the  little  houses  fiimished  by 
the  Chicago  Shelter  Committee  to  those  who  possessed  or  could  pro- 
aire  ground  on  which  to  build. 


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Authors,    in    Prose   and    Poetry.     By   Tryon  Edwards,    D.D. 
i2mo,  cloth  extra I.75 

Weitbrecht. 

Miracles  of  Faith :     A  Sketch  of  the  Life  of  Beat6  Paulus.     f 
By  Mary  Weitbrecht.     With  an  Introduction  by  Charles  S. 
Robinson,  D. D.     i8mo,  red  edges. 0.75 


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